Times of War: A Pokemon Fanfiction
by Ookaminii
Summary: A story about a world where man and Pokemon live separate. Where man and Pokemon battle, torture, and destroy each-other. Read to find out more.
1. Prologue

Okay...So, this is going to be my first Fanfiction EVER! As guessed, it's going to be a Pokemon story- and by Pokemon, I mean POKEMON! Not Ash, not Misty, or any of the other people from the anime/manga are going to be a part of this story; though there _might_, be mentioning's of them. MIGHT. So, this is basically the explanation of what this story is going to be- feel free to skip it if you just don't give a damn, but you might get confused if you do. **I DO NOT OWN POKEMON!**

***Note* This is not a chapter- it is a blunt explanation of what lead to the current story! So, its written like crap. I had hopped that it would sound more like someone telling a story based on memory, but, people seem to come up to this chapter, then use it to judge the entire story. Trust me- everything past this point is WAY better.**

"_Years ago, a group of scientists came together, and set out to capture the legendary Pokemon. By some sick means of fate, they succeeded, and captured every legendary save for Arceus- and upon obtaining the legendaries...They destroyed them. They tore the legendaries apart, molecule by molecule, then took their DNA and did horrific experiments with it. These sick, twisted experiments resulted in the birth of new legendary Pokemon- Pokemon born as a result of genetic splicing. These legendaries were the end result of a cloning experiment They were test-tube Pokemon, most of which didn't even resemble the original legendaries, because they were created from the DNA of two or more legendary Pokemon._

_As for Arceus, who had stood by and allowed these incidents to take place- Arceus who had hoped that the humans would realize they had done wrong and do something to make amends...He was enraged! Come the "Birth" of the last test-tube legendary, Arceus appeared before the scientists and laid a curse upon mankind!_

"_**Humans... I am appalled at what I have witnessed..! For all these years, I have stood idly by and **_watched**_ as you destroyed my beloved children- I stood waiting for you to realize you wrongdoings and make an attempt at earning forgiveness..! But my hopes for you, have been in _**vain_**..! So now, I come before you to cast my judgment on your race- on the **_human**_ race..!_**

_**I have deemed you unworthy of the company, of the friendship, and of the **_loyalty**_, of my beloved offspring! From this day, and onward, until mankind has re-earned the _**right_** to live alongside Pokemon..! This world will be divided..!"**_

_Arceus roared in anger, before he enacted the effects of his judgment- disappearing in a great ball of light which spread across the world, engulfing it. When at last the light faded, the people of the world found that they had been separated from their Pokemon. The world had grown in size, and it had been divided into two halves- one side for mankind, the other for Pokemon. From that day on, the relationship between humans and Pokemon has never been the same...Now, humans and Pokemon are caught in a war with each-other- and a new group of scientists have been grouped together. As a result, any Pokemon foolish enough to venture into human land is captured and experimented on- and any human unfortunate enough to wander into Pokemon territory is hunted down and killed._

_However, these consequences are not absolute. Some people- good people who love Pokemon and accept that they may be slain by them, are allowed to live among them. And some of the captured Pokemon are secretly released by kindhearted scientists before, but usually after, being experimented on. And so, Arceus waits patiently for man to re-earn its place beside Pokemon- he waits patiently for the world to be returned to its intended state..."_

So, yeah, thats the basic background for the story- or at least the explanation for what's going on. To make a few more things clear, Arceus is the only REAL legendary Pokemon left. The other legendary Pokemon wandering the world are the ones created by the scientists before the story actually takes place. Some of these legendaries look a lot like, and in some cases EXACTLY like the originals that they were created from. Others don't share any resemblances to the original legendaries. As for whats going on now, this story is about Pokemon- and it starts with my newest O.C Pokemon Xela (Shell-ah), who is an Absol that escaped the scientists after being experimented on for years. Now, this is where all of YOU come in. I want people to send me character ideas. As in, I want you to **create** your own Pokemon character and send me the details on them. What I'm looking for will be posted below. I'm even going out of my way to make the story more realistic, so I'll also be explaining more about how Pokemon are in this story. Look below for everything else.

**Pokemon of this story:**

1. They DON'T ALL lay eggs! Only bird/bug/reptilian/fish Pokemon lay eggs in this one! Mammalian Pokemon (A.E Pokemon like Ninetails, and any other Pokemon that looks like a MAMAL) give birth!

2. only breed during their 2nd and 3rd evolutions! So, since there will be _some_ romance (I'm a woman so sue me), it sure as hell isn't going to be between a Starly and a Staraptor! (As far as I'm concerned, thats considered a Pedophile relationship)

3. I'm fixing things to work with how the Pokedex describes Pokemon. (A.E: Vulpix's Pokedex entry says its born with _**1**_ snow white tail- but in the game, a newly hatched Vulpix has _**6**_!) So, basically I'm making this story more accurate.

4. Cross-species don't automatically take after their mothers! They'll look like mix's as far as I'm concerned- and all Pokemon of the same species **don't **look exactly ALIKE!

5. I might to LEMON chapters; but only as requests if they are with characters other than mine

(If I think of anything else, I'll post it at the start of later chapters)

**Other issues:**

Since I'm aware of the fact that as far as things go, people use Pokemon for food. So, I'm going to point this out. PEOPLE HUNT AND EAT POKEMON IN THIS STORY! I'm not just gonna beat around the bush and pretend that people have been surviving for decades without Pokemon to eat. As for milk products and such- lets assume that there are specialists sent out to gather the needed "Substances" from Pokemon. We'll also assume that cheese/milk/ anything made with dairy products is EXTREMELY expensive. If you guys can think of anything else that I'm ignoring, feel free to point it out and I'll make note of it later.

Finally! We've reached the fun part- creating a character. I'm even putting an example so people have a better idea- BUT, I also have a few rules.

1. No Human characters! (As of yet. This may change, but I'll tell you when)

2. No original legendaries! If you want to be a legendary Pokemon, your gonna be a test-tube legendary.

3. (More like 2.5) If your gonna be a legendary, tell me which of the originals were used to create you- and name your legendary. Give them decent names please- if you show up and name your Pokemon Bob, I'm going to ignore you! Actually, two names for legendaries- An legendary name (species name) and then what you call them (nickname).

4. This is mainly for those doing Pokemon of different species (Like, Bayleef and Togekiss, or something weird like that)- describe your appearance please. (I'll be more likely to use your character if you somehow make an actual picture and send it to me. Please? ^^)

5. Tell me what type you are if your a mix. (A Bayleef and Togekiss would be a Fairy, Flying, and Plant type Pokemon.) No more than 4 types per mix-breed Pokemon. (Legendaries and experiments can have up to 9 types, but they must be listed.

6. If you are a mix, tell me if you evolve or not, and try to give me a description of what the evolution looks like.

P.S I would appreciate detailed descriptions of any character you offer for this story

(I think thats it for now. I'll add comments as I see fit)

Now, here's my character's bio-sheet.

**Name**: Xela

**Original Species**: Absol

**Current Species**: Altered Absol (She still looks like an Absol for the most part, but changes during Mega-evolution. Her types/weaknesses have also been messed with)

**Parent Species**: Mother- Absol. Father- Absol

**Gender**: Female

**Type(s)**: Dark, Psychic, Fairy, Grass, Fire, Ice

**Appearance**: She is a small Absol. Her fur has crimson stains because of the experiments performed on her. Her back, right foot is missing a claw. Her horn has a crack going down the middle. She has a broken left fang.

**Mega-Evolution Appearance**: Her eyes turn violet and glow. Her wings are dark purple and bat like. Her lengthened fur/hair develops black streaks along with the crimson stains. Her claws lengthen, as do her fangs.

**Background**: Born in the mountains, and raised by her loving parents, she lived a peaceful life until humans raided her homeland and captured her and her parents. For years following the even, she and the captured Pokemon were experimented on by human scientists- these experiments resulted in the deaths of her beloved parents, and permanent changes in her body. One of these experiments ended with a man-made mega-evolution stone being permanently embedded in her chest; it is connected to her heart, and removing it would kill her. As a result of that experiment, she gained a secondary form- one unique among Absol Mega-evolutions. Other experiments resulted in her gaining extra types- she went from being a normal dark type, to a multi-type; granting her new immunities. After years of painful experimentation, she somehow managed to escape the scientists, and fled back to her homeland; freeing dozens of other experiment Pokemon along the way. She returned home to find that she no longer belonged there- and that she no longer new how to relate to normal Pokemon. Now, lost and alone in the world, she wanders aimlessly, searching for a purpose...

So,, yeah, that my character. I used her as an example. Now, here's what you need to create a character of your own.

**Name**:

**Original Species** (Everyone puts this):

**Current Species **(Only applies to the experiment Pokemon):

**Parent Species**:

**Gender**:

**Type(s)**:

**Appearance**:

**Mega-Evolution Appearance** (Anyone can have one- but only experiments can altar a real mega-evolution. Otherwise, create your own.):

**Background**:

As an added note, I don't care whether or not you title your review of your creating a character. Hell, make a character and give me a review at the same time. This is just me, having fun, inviting other people to have fun with me. But please, don't be a jerk.


	2. Chapter 1

There was only silence. A thick, loud, unbearable silence that not even the wind dared to disturb. The sky was darkening- only a few bold rays of light continued to shine as the sun faded over the horizon. The forest seemed empty- the only Pokemon in sight was a lone, female, Absol. An Absol with fur stained red and a body bearing scars of past events- and yet not even her footsteps could be heard, there were no sounds brave enough to break the silence. Every movement she made was painstakingly slow and clumsy- she was exhausted and without a place to rest. She was without a home. Yet despite her worn down state, and her need for proper shelter, she continued down her path without complaint. She did not pause to check for company, did not stop to lie down. She just continued down her lonesome path, silently and without question or care for whoever, or whatever, may be around. This, was her way of life. Endless hours of travel that only led to her collapsing and lying exhausted and defenseless for days on end. Eating only when her hunger drove her to silent tears, and drinking only when her thirst rendered her throat dry and her voice mute. She fought whenever confronted and never bothered to lick her wounds come battles end- every fight ended in her victory and in the crippling of the Pokemon who challenged her. This was her life, or what had become of it over the years.

Now, worn down and tired, she continues along the forest path- ignoring the many eyes that watch her from the darkness. Yes, there are many eyes on her- the eyes of Pokemon to frightened by her presence to stay out in the open. Oh, how she envied them- she envied their peaceful lifestyle, their behavior. The way they ate whenever they wanted, and slept at their own leisure. The tight knit families and everything that went along with their social lives. The love, the drama, the anger- everything that made them _normal._ She longed for all of it- because they were things she didn't have. She is drawn out of her thoughts when she unexpectedly steps in something wet- she nearly walked into a river. She must've unintentionally wandered off the path while she was lost in her thoughts. Silently, she lifts her paw out of the water, and peers down at her own reflection. First, her eyes wander to damaged horn, staring blankly at the crack that runs from its tip down to its center. If she was to smash her horn against a rock, would it break? She closed her eyes for a moment and spread her jaws, before opening her eyes. She could see her damaged fang- the left fang that had broken when she snapped at the iron bars of the man made cage she had been held in. Every now and again the tooth would throb with an agonizing pain- but she rarely paid it any mind.

Blinking, she closed her mouth and cast her gaze to the remainder of her reflection- namely her fur. Her bloodstained white fur. How many years had she spent trying to wash the stains away? How many times had she torn the hair away hoping for it to grow back without stain, only to have it grow back again sporting that same crimson flaw? She couldn't even remember anymore. As if hoping to find a better view of herself, she steps backwards and turns to the side for a moment to examine the length of her body- but she only finds what troubles her. Her body is small- just over half the size of an adult Absol. She made up for her small size by having longer legs, but she didn't care much for her legs either- mainly because of her back paw. Her right paw was missing a claw, the middle claw to make things worse- so her foot looked like something that needed to be on a bird. Growling slightly, she turned back to face the water properly and she glared down at her face reflecting in the water. She was a poorly shaped, deformed, poor excuse for an Absol! Growling again, louder this time, she lifts a paw and slams it down on the waters surface in a vain attempt at fixing her self-image. All she manages to do is get herself wet.

"Something troubling you?" An odd voice suddenly sounded off, drawing the young Absol from her thoughts. In an instant, her eyes went from her reflection to some place upriver. Much to her surprise, she spotted a Magicarp- he was taking refuge in a currently spot between two rocks near the riverbank. Glaring, the turned to face the fish, but she made no move to approach him.

"What do you care?!" She said coldly, her voice more feminine than her physical appearance would lead one to believe. Upon hearing the question, the Magicarp moved closer to the riverbank, and set his body atop the mud for support.

"Well, forgive an old fish for prying, but you seem troubled to me. Care to talk about it?" The Magicarp said calmly. The Absol scoffed, and threw her head to the side- she had no intention of discussing her personal matters with a fish. A fish that couldn't even swim against the current no less.  
"Then would you care to hear out a tired old Magicarp's story?" The fish said shortly after seeing the Absol refuse his offer to hear her tale. With a sigh, the Absol took a few well placed steps forward so that she could sit beside the Magicarp. Seeing as the fish probably didn't intend on leaving her alone, she might as well listen- this was the closest she'd had to a real conversation in a years.

"Make it quick..." She said with a sigh, before lying down and resting her head on her paws to better hear the Magicarp when he spoke. In doing so, she unintentionally took some time to get some much needed rest.

"Thank you..." The Magicarp said, before pausing for a moment to her get comfortable.  
"Well, my name is Czar, and as you can see, I seem to be in a bit of a dilemma. You see, I've been trapped her by the bank for about three days now, and I can't seem to get out." Czar, the Magicarp, said calmly- at least now the Absol knew why his voice sounded so strained. The poor guy probably hadn't had any food since he got stranded.

"Then why don't you jump over the rocks and follow the current?" The Absol said tiredly, her eyes somewhat closed. If she lied down to much longer, she'd fall asleep- but she didn't seem to realize how close she was to entering dreamland.

"Well, thats an even bigger issue miss. I live _upriver_, I need to go against the current to get back home. Now, I've already tried jumping the rocks and leaping against the current, but its just to _strong_ for me! My last attempt sent me rushing downriver so quickly that I never managed to make more than a few jumps before tiring out, and if I hadn't spotted these rocks and jumped over them I'd of been washed all the way to the ocean by now..." Czar said sadly.  
"I haven't tried to fight the current since then for fear of never being able to see my family again..." He said in a more lonesome tone, earning the Absol's unbridled attention.

"How long have you been away from home?" She asked gently, startling herself in the process- how long had it been since she'd used a soft tone?

"Nine days..." Czar said solemnly.  
"And I've been having such a hard time. I haven't eaten since I was washed downstream, and I've tried asking for help, but everyone just ignores me..." He said quietly, his tone low and heartbroken.  
"Please miss, wont you help me get home? I don't have much to give you in return, but I promise I'll repay you _somehow_...I just..._Please_..." The Magicarp pleaded, splashing his fins in the water as he backed off of the mud, half expecting the Absol to turn and walk off like everyone else he had spoken to. So, naturally he was surprised when he was scooped out of the water by a paw and lifted into the air instead. The Absol had taken pity on the tired old fish, and so she was going to take him home.  
"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Czar exclaimed happily, flailing his fins on impulse.  
"I live a few miles upriver, in a little lake with crystal clear water! You'll know it right away!" The Magicarp said happily, his spirits uplifted by sheer joy. After being away from home for so long, and having so many Pokemon leave him alone to die, he was overjoyed to have someone help him out of his dilemma. He remained fairly silent for the trip after his last statement- save the the occasional joyous "Thank you!".

All in all, the journey to Czar's home was uneventful. The pair didn't encounter any other Pokemon, save to the remains of a Stantler- the poor thing had probably been devoured by a pack of Houndoom. Other than that, they saw nothing. They passed quite a few trees, the occasional boulder or pile of rocks; the Absol found a small blue stone that she found interesting. She stuck it between her toes to keep from loosing it. Sometimes she wished that she'd snatched a bag when the fled the human settlements..._Moving on_, she expected to come across the Magicarp's lake any moment now- she'd already been walking for well over an hour, and now it was pitch black outside. If it wasn't for her nocturnal vision she'd probably be in deep shit right about now. Just as that thought crossed her mind, the sound of running water died down drastically- she still heard water, but it sounded less violent. Shifting her gaze, she picked up her pace a bit and headed towards the quieting water. The further upriver she went, the harder it became to hear the river- until at last she reached the lake that Czar had told her about. The lake was located uphill, and the edge of it was placed just at the falling point of the slope. That was probably how the Magicarp and wound up being swept downriver- his species couldn't swim against a slight current.

As soon as she reached the calmest part of the water, the lent her head over the bank, loosened her jaws, and dropped Czar into the water with a "Plop". An instant later, the fish poked his head out of the water to converse with the Absol for a moment.

"I can't thank you enough for this! I was afraid that I'd die back there, all alone and with everyone ignoring me. But _you_, you save my life today, and I doubt I'll ever be able to repay you for that..." Czar said happily, his body bobbing slightly in the water.  
"I have something I'd like to give to you, but, would you be so kind as to wait here for a little while? I haven't eaten in days..." He added after a short pause- his eyes were wide and pleading. After a moment, the Absol offered something akin to a smile.

"Alright, I'll humor you for a while...But, is there somewhere a little more, comfortable for me to lie down?" She said in a quiet voice, startling herself for the second time that day. What was it about the Magicarp that had mellowed her out so much? Maybe she could blame it on hunger, and, and _thirst_. She hadn't noticed it much earlier, but now that she was staying still, she realized how dry her throat actually felt. When had she last stopped to get a _real_ drink of water? In all honesty, she couldn't remember. She'd been getting by by licking dew off of grass and leaves for at least three weeks- this had been the first time she'd come across a real source of water in a long time. Without another thought on the matter, she knelt down and dipped her mouth into the waters surface. A split second later, she felt the semi-familiar sensation of cold water pooling in the depths of her stomach. The feeling was one she hadn't felt for a long time- it was the feeling of re-hydration. This was the reason that she put off eating and drinking for only dire situations- the feeling of stating ones desires after waiting for such a long period of time brought her a sense of satisfaction that she could find nowhere else. By the time she finished drinking, she realized that she'd been so lost in her task that she hadn't been paying any attention to Czar, who had been speaking to her while she drank. Catching her careless mistake, she tilts her head up to look at the Magicarp, a few stray drops of water dripping off her chin.  
"Come again?" She asked calmly, succeeding in hiding her embarrassment.

"I said, you sure were thirsty. I've never seen anyone drink that much..." Czar said with an amused tone, before flicking his tail in an attempt to keep his head above water for a moment longer.  
"As for your other issue, I've noticed a patch of flowers a little further up at the far end of the lake, I spot it every other time I jump. There are even a few berry bushes growing near the flowers, so you can eat if your hungry..." He added, before suddenly disappearing beneath the surface of the water. That must have been his way of saying "Alright, I'm gonna go stuff my face now.". Shortly after, the Absol lifted her face away from the water, and she turned around to head further up the lake in search of the flower patch that Czar had told her about. As she walked, the peered down into the water out of curiosity- there were a lot of fish. Feebas, Goldeen, Magicarp, there were even a few Milotic. So many fish in such a small lake- it couldn't have been more than a couple hundred feet across in both directions. She was honestly surprised that there was enough food available to feed all of them. Her thoughts were cut short when she reached the flower patch, and sure enough, not far away from it were a small number of berry bushes. She fell still for a moment and contemplated her options.

Her first option was to simply plop down and take a nap for the next few hours. Her second was to go over to the bushes and eat until Czar called her back over to him. Her third option was to go and scarf down a few berries, and then take a short nap, and her last option was to do neither. The last option was thrown out the window as soon as it crossed her mind- and she was a little iffy on her first pair of choices- it didn't take long for her to go with option number three. So, she strode over to the berry bushes and proceeded to take her pick of what was available. There were only three types of berries growing; Oran, Pinap, and Sitrus. She was a Pokemon that preferred the taste of Sitrus berries, so she ate all of the ripe ones she could find- but what she managed to eat was not enough to satisfy her hunger. So she turned her attention to the other available berries- it didn't even take her half an hour to eat every ripe berry off of every bush. While the amount of food she had eaten still wasn't enough to fully satisfy her, it was enough to get her by for another five or six days. Then she'd be ready to hunt, and eat her fill of whatever prey she managed to sink her teeth into. The idea of if was enough to make her lick her lips with anticipation- blame her nature as a carnivorous beast for making her enjoy the taste of blood. With all of the available food eaten and done with, she turned and strode back to the flower patch.

There was a particularly nice spot full of sweet smelling white flowers in full bloom- this was where she opted to lie down for her nap. The sweet smell of the flowers, paired with the soft texture, was more than enough to lull her into a deep slumber...

_She was in a cold dark room, lying on a hard metal floor- a floor made sticky by a pool of steadily drying blood. The sickening smell of death and decay lingered in the room, making the air unbearably thick and hard to breath. She was bound from head to toe by heavy chains and leather straps. She was muzzled, and her legs were chained together. The blood drying on the floor was hers- it was soaking into her porcelain fur and making her feel more ill than she already was. One of her eyes was stuck closed from infection- she wouldn't be surprised if someone came in to scoop it right out of her skull. She'd already seem them do the same to her parents. Her parents were dead now. They were lying in the same room as her, slowly decaying and sitting in a pile of their own excrement. The blood beneath their bodies had long since thickened, and become a disgusting pool of red and black sludge that smelt worse than anything else in the room. Their horns were gone; the humans had sawed them off not long before they died. Most of their teeth were missing, and they were both missing their eyes. Even their tongues were gone. A stray tear of sorrow crept down her bruised cheeks to soak into the bloodied hair that clung to her face. She missed her parents terribly- she wanted them to be there with her. She wanted them there to whisper gentle words of reassurance, to tell her that everything was going to be alright. _

_Yet part of her was glad that they had passed- glad because their pain had ended, because the living have no means of harming the dead. Part of her hoped that she would die soon, because she wanted to be by their sides again. But, another part of her wanted to live, and to escape the hellish prison she had been taken to- because if she was to live, if she was to escape, then her parents would not have died in __**vain**__. More tears fell from her eyes as her conflicting emotions battled over the right to her mind. She wanted to live, she wanted to die. She wanted her parents, and yet she was relieved that they were dead. She failed at repressing a heavy sob as the agony of her given state wracked her damaged body, and like a fool she pressed her face against the bloody floor beneath her in an attempt to stabilize her trembling body. Her eye hurt, her legs hurt. The holes in her sides stung from the approaching infection taking hold of her body. Her horn was killing her- the humans had damaged it when the captured her, and they hadn't bothered to cut it off after they discovered that it had lost its value. How cruel they were, the humans. How cruel they were for leaving her in this state when they had the means of putting her out of her misery. They didn't even have to kill her, they just had to bring in a syringe filled with whatever they had used on her when the captured her. They only had to give her whatever it was they'd used to make her go to sleep that first time._

_She spent hours on end lying alone in that room being tormented by her own thoughts; lying in agony because of her injuries. Then, the people in white coats came in to toy with her for a while. They poked and prodded at her with metal sticks that shocked her at the press of a button. Sometimes they grabbed her by her horn and forced her onto her feet so that they could push steel into the holes they put in her sides. Every now and again they'd kick her in the ribs on in the legs so that she'd scream- they laughed loudly whenever they managed to get a pained sound out of her. Then, when they tired of their senseless routine, they pulled her chains out of the ground and dragged her out of the room. By then she'd lost the will to try and fight them- she already knew what would happen once they reached the black door at the end of the hallway..._

She woke with a start when she felt something wet come into contact with her face, and she jumped up to scan her surrounding on impulse. She was panting heavily, and her legs were shaking- the dream she'd been having had been enough to make her forget where she was. However, her memories quickly returned upon spotting a Magicarp jumping out of the water repeatedly. Czar had splashed her with some water to get her to wake up- he seamed eager to get her attention. Taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down, she slowly walked over to the waters edge and sat down- she could feel her heart racing.

"Good, your awake..." Czar said calmly, though he had a look in his eye that suggested that he was curious about her shaken state- the Absol was glad that he overlooked her current behavior.  
"Now that your up, I have something I'd like to give you. Wait her for a moment while my friends and I get it." He said before suddenly disappearing beneath the waters surface- a dozen or so other Pokemon swam after him as he dove to the bottom of the lake. Not long after, the Magicarp, accompanied by a Milotic, resurfaced with a wooden chest. The Milotic helped the Absol pull the chest ashore, before taking her leave- apparently the beautiful Pokemon had only been there for assistance.  
"Inside that chest are some items you might useful, I want you to take all of them." The Magicarp said calmly, before falling completely silent. Then, he watched and waited as the Absol pried open the chest, and pulled its held items out one by one. There were three items in total; a Prism Scale, a Moon Stone, and a vest- a Pokemon vest. The vest had a number of Pockets and was specifically designed to be worn by Pokemon of her body type- it was an incredibly rare find in the current world. Vests like these stopped being produced over three hundred and fifty years ago, when Arceus divided the world into two halves separated by a ring of molten lava. So, how had Czar managed to get a hold of such a valuable item?

"Where did you get this?!" The Absol asked in a shocked tone as she continued to examine the vest- somehow it was the ideal size for her, it would be a perfect fit. For a split second her expression softened; maybe miracles did happen after all.

"It was a family heirloom, but considering what you've done for me, I think its better off with you." Czar said with a smile, flicking his fins in the water to stay afloat.

"Are you sure?" She asked while she pressed her paw against the fabric of the vest- it was soft, like a Silcoon's thread. If it was anything like the threads of bug-type Pokemon then that meant it'd be strong enough to act as armor in a battle.

"Yes, I'm sure. Besides, you have more use for it than I do. I certainly can't wear it." Czar said with a small smile, before he fell silent and watched as the Absol slipped into her new attire. She couldn't slip it over her head because of her horn, and she couldn't slide it up her rear because she wouldn't be able to get her legs into it. The Magicarp had to admit, it was pretty amusing watching the Absol try to figure out how to get the vest on. When she couldn't slip the vest on as it was, the Absol took to trying to figure out how to unzip the vest so that she could put it on the old fashioned way. That took a while considering that she didn't have opposable thumbs- her next best method of pulling the zipper was to stand on it and latch onto the pull with her teeth. Even that took some time. When she finally managed to unzip the vest, she had to figure out how to put the damn thing on without flipping it inside out- and then she'd have to figure out how to re-zip it. For a second or so she was at a complete loss, and then she remembered one of the little side effects that came with her time in the human settlements. She'd gained psychic powers, among a few other abilities- she'd forgotten about her unnatural talents due to her lack of putting them to use. Once she'd remembered her psychic powers, she activated them, and used them lift the vest off of the ground so that she could slip into it one leg at a time.

Then, she zipped up the vest, and adjusted it somewhat so it fit her more appropriately, before she moved to stand in front of the water. This time when she examined her reflection in the water, she wasn't looking at her face or at the other physical oddities of her body, she was looking at how well the vest fit her fame. In all honesty, it looked nice, and the fact that it hid a large portion of her bloodstained fur from view was a huge bonus.

"Lovely..." She said with a small smile as she continued to look herself over- yes, she could put this vest to good use. One of those uses being storage of needed items- namely the small blue stone she had found on the way to the lake. So, naturally the next thing she did was take the stone out from between her toes, and she put it in a vest pocket along with the Prism Scale and the Moon Stone. Then, she turned her attention back to Czar.  
"Thank you for the gifts, they'll be of good use..." She said happily.  
"But, you've given me three rewards for only one task. The vest is more than enough thanks for saving your life, is there anything else I could do for you in return for the Prism Scale and the Moon Stone?" She asked gently, her eyes leaving the Magicarp's frame to stare at the edge of the lake. There was a good four feet stream running out of the lake and into the river- that was the only place where Czar could have been swept downstream. There was a long period of silence before the Magicarp spoke up.

"Well, if you insist on doing more, then I guess I can have you do something..." Czar said hesitantly, his body bobbing slightly in the water. All he received in response was a curt nod from the Absol.  
"I saw you looking at the stream earlier, and I know that you know that thats how I got swept into the river. So, I want you to line that area with some rocks. That way, none of the fish in the lake can ever be swept away again..." He said calmly, before falling silent for a moment.  
"After you've done that, I'll tell you what else I'd like you to do." He said, before suddenly diving under the water- that must've been his cue for her to get to work. So, without so much as a thought on the matter, the Absol turned away from the lake and set out in search of stones. She found a number of them- big and small, thin and wide; there were hundreds of them scattered throughout the forest. By the time she'd collected enough of them and moved them by the lake, the sun had already decided to grace the dark sky with its subtle rays of light. The sun had already lit the horizon by the time she'd moved all the rocks into the lake- she covered the entire stream edge and then some just to make sure none of the fish Pokemon could ever be swept away again.

Then, after everything was over and done with, Czar poked his head out of the water and splashed loudly to gain the Absol's attention. She walked over to where he floated and waited silently for him to give her her next task.

"You did an excellent job, thank you..." Czar said calmly, earning a small bow of acknowledgment from the Absol.  
"Now, I suppose your wondering what else I'd like you to do..." He said before falling silent for a moment to wait and see if the Pokemon he was speaking to had anything to say. When he was given no response, he continued.  
"Well, I'd like you to try and change your outlook on the world. Now, I don't know what had you so upset when I spotted you yesterday, but I'm positive that it has something to do whatever changed your appearance...And your abilities..." He said hesitantly, pausing for a moment to let his words sink in. As expected, the Absol was giving him a look of fear, confusion, and anger.  
"Listen, I don't know what happened to you, but I know that its left you frightened, and angry, and alone...Your a sweet child- barely even old enough to take a go a becoming a mother. However, there is something that I do know. You shouldn't spend the rest of you life letting the past rule your future. Laugh, cry, find some friends, start a family. Live your life to the fullest and put your talents to better use. Don't wander aimlessly in the dark of your sorrows..." He said gently- small tears were starting to form in the Absol's eyes. Seems what he had said had had some effect on her mindset.  
"Thats all I wanted to say..." He added, before disappearing under the surface of the water, leaving the Absol with her thoughts.

She needed some time to process everything he had told her. In fact, she needed a lot of time. She spent hours lying in the patch of flowers thinking over what Czar had said to her. She was sad. She was angry. She felt abandoned and misunderstood- yet at the same time she felt relived. She felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted of her shoulders, and that bothered her- it bothered her because she didn't understand why. Was it because for the first time in years, she actually felt accepted? Was it because Czar had taken the time to give her the pep-talk she'd needed since her escape from the human settlements? There were so many questions running through her mind that she couldn't process all of them. When she finally decided to take the first step needed to follow Czar's advise, she still hadn't processed all of her emotions- but what she was feeling now would take days, maybe even weeks to properly come to terms with.

"Are you alright?" Czar asked gently as he swam beside the Absol, who had started to head downriver- she had decided to leave. He wanted to at least give her a proper send off.

"I...I don't know..." The Absol said slowly, her voice low and mournful.  
"But...I've thought about what you said, and, I've come to realize that I can't put your advise to use unless I set out in search of happiness. So...I think I'll be alright, eventually." She said glumly, halting her movements for a moment to give the Magicarp a good, long, look. Then, she cast him a hesitant smile and she picked up her pace to set out on her journey. However, just before she could disappear over the edge of the slope, the sound of a loud splash made her pause and look back towards the lake. Czar was jumping up and down in an attempt to catch her attention.

"Hey, I never got you name!" Czar shouted excitedly while he jumped, his actions provoking a somewhat relieved expression from the Absol.

"Its Xela!" She shouted after a moment, before turning back down the slope and disappearing. Czar had heard her, she was sure of that...

Alright, this is the first official chapter. Also, I'd like to point out that I am now accepting character offers. Just check the previous page for detail on that if your one of the people that decided to skip out on reading it.

Reviews? I could kinds use some.


	3. Chapter 2

Ok, now we have the next chapter! Woo! So, uhm, what to say..? OH! I remember now- he have a new character being introduced. He's going to be long term because he is the **first **character submitted to my story via review!

This characters name is- not telling! XD I'm such a tease. But seriously, I didn't reveal his name this chapter- mainly to make you anxious to learn more about him in the upcoming chapters. I'll probably reveal his name near the middle or the end of the next chapter, so, don't get to mad about not knowing his name yet.

Full credit for this new character goes to his creator- I plan on asking his permission before I just blurt his name out because, I **don't** want people suddenly trolling him! You know who you are, owner of this character, if your alright with my putting your username in the little BS sections I dedicate to babbling before the story, then message me. Otherwise, I'll wait another 5 or 6 chapters before I even consider doing it myself.

Uhm...What else..? Hm, can't seem to think of anything right now- WAIT! Just remembered!

There is GORE in this chapter- bloodshed! Human deaths! So, if you don't want to read that- then skip it, or don't bother reading further into the story because, it will be happening frequently enough.

On another note, I seem to be coming down with a cold- so, there may be a number of unintentional errors come the last 5 or 6 paragraphs of the story. If you see them, feel free to point them out- I'll come back through and "update" this chapter with fewer errors.

With that being said- Enjoy the story! ^^

Her journey had never been so dreadful- there was an odd sense of anxiety flowing though Xela's being, and she was far from used to it. Suddenly every sight and every sound put her on edge- the slightest ruffling of the leaves made her jump, and the quiet whisper of the wind rang in her ears like an agonized scream of death. She had suddenly become over-aware of her surroundings- so aware that she could feel the individual grains of sand beneath her feet. She was walking an an unusually cautious pace, moving every limb on her body in a specific way- it was as if she was testing the ground. Her eyes were darting around constantly; her muscles twitching with anticipation she rarely ever felt- but she had a vague idea so to what might have set her on edge. She could _smell_ humans, and their scent alone made the individual hairs on her body stand erect with fear- or maybe it was rage. Her emotions were jumbled at the current moment- part of her hoped that a human would jump out at her, and another part of her hoped that she wouldn't encounter man. She wanted to fight a human, and yet at the same time she wanted to run away from them- it can be funny how the mind works. For the umpteenth time since catching the scent of man, she cringed awkwardly at a sudden sound- this time it was that of an old branch falling from a tree. She checked around the tree out of instinct, just to be sure that nothing _unusual_ had made the branch fall- the only smells she found were that of Parasect and Rattata.

That was a relief, she'd been afraid that a human had seen her and run to get allies. Against one human she was sure to win, but against an entire group armed with weapons designed to capture Pokemon, she wouldn't stand a chance. The last thing she wanted was to wind up in the settlements again- she shuddered involuntarily at the thought. The settlements were, a dreadful place as far as Pokemon concerns went. They were the places located just on the other side of the great river of lava that divided the world into halves- any Pokemon bold enough to get close enough to the lavas edge would catch a glimpse of one of the horrific human settlements. The memories of her time among the humans were enough to make her stomach knot up- the sensation was equivalent to that of morning sickness, as in you knew you were going to vomit, you just couldn't tell _when_. She could already taste the bile in the back of her throat, so it was only a matter of time until- her entire body suddenly went rigid when a sudden gust of wind whizzed by her. Her eyes were wide, with fright and with excitement. She was digging her claws into the ground as if she expected to suddenly float away. The hairs on her neck and along her back were raised on edge, her standing like a stick in in the dirt. The instant that the wind brushed by her nose, her level of awareness skyrocketed to an almost painful level- the nerves in her horn had even become active. To ask what the cause of her sudden reaction was would have been a foolishly placed question- the answer would have been clear to anyone standing downwind of her.

She smelled _man_- and this scent was fresh. Instinctively, she deeply inhaled through her nose to catch another whiff of the smell, and the various scents that hit her nostrils were immediately sorted- there was more in the air than what she'd initially caught. Sweat. The faint perfume of smoke. Burnt hair- but there was something else, something faint and oddly familiar. Suddenly her pupils narrowed dangerously as her predatory nature fell into override- she recognized the last smell. _Blood_-Pokemon blood. That could only mean one thing- the humans that were in the area had caught a Pokemon, which meant that they planned on _doing_ something with whoever they managed to capture. If she'd learned anything from her experiences as a cub, she'd learned that the past had a tendency of repeating itself. That knowledge made it very likely that the Pokemon they'd captured had been sought out for experimenting- which was just as bad as saying that they intended on straight up killing their unfortunate victim. That was something she wasn't about to let happen! So, without another though on the matter, she _charged_! Zig-zagging through the various tree and bush species, she tailed the source of the smell- pursuing it just as a Druddigon pursues its prey. Over and under fallen logs and branches. Up and out of a large crater in the earth- a hole caused by a large dragon type Pokemon crashing into the forest after fainting from exhaustion during flight.

Her claws tore holes in the soft earth beneath her feet as she ran- the force of each step leaving an indent in the dirt, making it look as if it had been slashed at. She panted quietly, her breath quickened by her vigorous sprinting- her breath grew so hot that steam was exhaled. The fires of rage were burning her insides to ash, and yet at the same, the flames were fueling her movements. Time seemed to slow down to her, but in reality she had reached speeds that no Absol in existence had ever been known to reach. Then, she abruptly stopped moving, and came to a quiet, skidding halt behind a pair of red oak trees- the scent she was chasing had reached its height in potency. Still panting, she slowly moved to the side of the trees, and peered out into the opening on the other side. As was expected, there were a group of humans fighting a Pokemon- a Zoroark to be specific. However, there was something, _off_ about this particular Zoroark. _He_, she could tell his gender by a simple glance, was taller than a normal Zoroark- and his coloration was different. His fur was a deep shade of violet, there were odd designs on his face- he looked as if he had been given a facial tattoo. A wild tattoo- he looked downright fierce. His claws were thinner than they should have been, but from the looks of his savage movements, they were about as dexterous as human fingers. He was a beast capable of wielding a weapon if he chose to. His mane was unusually thin- not the typical thick bush, but a thin and manageable, well kept "Ponytail".

Then there was she secondary coloration that adorned his features. The facial "Tattoo", his claws, and his mane, were an odd blue color. The closest color to its shade was crystal- and seeing that the blue shaded oddities seemed to give off a faint glow, _crystal_ seemed to be the best description. Xela's heart skipped a beat upon seeing how, _out of place_, the Zoroark was when compared to others of his species. He...Was exactly like her. He was an out of place, mutated, experiment- probably being re-captured by the humans that had changed his being so drastically. A menacing growl rose from the Absol's throat as soon as that realization dawned on her. No way in **HELL**, was she about to let a bunch of sick, twisted, disgusting humans, get a hold of him _again_! As far as she was concerned, his experiences made him someone she'd be more than willing to die protecting. She wasn't going to stand idly by as the humans roped, and chained the Zoroark like a useless piece of meat! She didn't care if they were armed to the teeth with weapons designed to take her down- she was going to tear every last one of them to pieces! Without another thought on the matter, she lept out from behind the trees, and _roared_! In an instant, all eyes flew from the frame of the struggling Zoroark, to the image of the enraged Absol. _Good_- she thought. Now they could get a good look at their handiwork.

"I hope you sick _fucks_ came here ready to die..!" Xela snarled madly, her eyes shifting to a dangerous, glowing, purple hue. At that moment, her psychic powers activated- she freed the vest from her body to prevent it from getting ruined. Her fur was already stained by blood- the entire point of the vest was to hide most of that from view.  
"Because you've all won a one way ticket to HELL!" She roared, her entire body taking on a blinding white glow. That light enveloped her entire body- enveloping her frame and hiding her image for a split second, only to immediately dissipate. When the humans were next granted a clear view of her frame, they stood awestruck in her presence- she had spontaneously evolved. _Mega-evolved_, to be accurate. Now, she stood before them as the _monster_ they had turned her into. Thin, black streaks had blended into her bloodstained white fur, which had lengthened around her head, neck, and chest. Her claws, and fangs had doubled in size, making her look more like saber-toothed beast than an Absol- and those weren't even the frightening changes in her body. The frightening change, in her opinion, came in the form of a pair of dark purple, bat-like wings. Wings large enough for flight, but small enough to not cause issue should she remain on land. Given the current situation, she may very well put her wings to use- get a feel of what air battles were all about.

Once the initial shock of her transformation faded, half of the humans rushed towards her- they were set and ready to bring her down. Granted, none of that mattered so long as she struck them down before they had a chance to wound her. Without a moments hesitation, she charged at the approaching men, and threw her head roughly to the side upon entering the crowd. Much to her satisfaction, her horn came into contact with the stomach of one of the men- she tore his abdomen open with the ease of a hot knife through butter. Immediately afterwards, she was rewarded by the sickening sound of her victims organs spilling out of his body, and splattering onto the floor. _One down_- She thought. Seventeen, eighteen, _nineteen_ more to go. This was going to be _fun_. As soon as she heard the man spill his guts, she spun to the side suddenly, and slashed at the nearest mans legs with her claws. How unfortunate it is for him that he had his side to her- she completely severed his ankle, permanently crippling him and rendering him defenseless to her assaults. She abruptly turned away and ignored him once he collapsed on the ground- she'd let him _suffer_ for a while. Her next assault was aimed at a pair of men holding shocking sticks- she lept at both of them with her wings extended, cutting their necks upon contact. She found a great deal of satisfaction in the sounds they made as they died of blood loss- loud, gurgling, noises.

However, that satisfaction quickly faded when a surging pain suddenly sprang from her shoulder- one of the men had charged at her with a heated blade, and driven it into her shoulder. Looks like she'd have more bloodstains to hide. After the brief second of shock left her frame, she abruptly turned, jumped onto her attackers frame, and clamped her jaws down on his throat. She could tell from the pressure in his windpipe that he was trying to scream, but her hold on his neck trapped all air inside of him. Or, at least it did until she jerked her head backwards, and tore his throat out- roughly half of his neck remained tightly held in her jaws as she watched the man die. Luckily for him, blood loss got to him before suffocation had a chance to. Now, how many of them were left. Lets see, she slew four, and crippled one, so five were down. Fifteen left then- five of them were currently attempting to further restrain the captured Zoroark. Now, she'd allow _none_ of that. Sidestepping an attack aimed at her by one of the men, she charged towards the five men who had _dared_ to harm the Zoroark. At that moment, the fire burning inside her body escaped, and she ignited into a living ball of fire. She'd of expected her hair to burn off had she not performed such a horrific move before. Flame tackle, that was the name of the move she used on the men. Two of them went down as she lept onto them, the other three were critically burned by her onslaught of flames.

The pair she'd tackled, were immediately left to _burn_. Then, she turned to the bound, and sadly injured Zoroark- their eyes locked for a few brief seconds, before she lashed out at his bindings. She swiped at the chains and the ropes with her claws, severing them with her heat rather than her nails. In a matter of seconds, the restrained Zoroark was free- and he waisted no time seeking his revenge on the humans that attacked him. Seems the pair were to take out the remaining ten men by working together. Seeing as the men were more his enemies than they were hers, Xela pulled her assault back drastically and allowed the violet bodied fox Pokemon to seek his vengeance. So, she doused her flames, and busied herself by going over to the man she had crippled, and she saw to it that he'd be forced to watch the ordeal as the event came to a close. Afterwards, whether or not she'd kill him would depend on how satisfied she was with the slaughter. With that, she fell still and watched as the Zoroark had his way with the remaining men. He started with an ice type attack- icy mist if she recognized the move correctly. Four of the men fell frozen on the spot, and the Zoroark shattered their icy bodies with a fighting type move- double kick. The sound those men made when they were reduced to bloody rubble was similar to the sound of shattering glass. Six left- how would the illusion-fox fishing off those who remained, the Absol was anxious to know. She didn't have to wait long. The Zoroark waisted no time on taking out another three men- his next choice in attack being ghost type, shadow sneak to be specific.

In a matter of seconds, the men attacked with the ghost type move were lying on the ground, marinating in pools of their own blood. Now, there were only three left- four, if Xela decided to kill the one she was standing on. Seeing that he was vainly struggling to get her off of him, she'd more than likely leave him to another fate- he'd either die of infection, or at the hands so some other Pokemon. Out of spite, she dipped her head enough to growl coldly in the mans ears, giving him a quiet warning about any "Misbehavior". Shifting her eyes, she settled her gaze on the Zoroark once again- just in time to witness his final attack. He used an electric type move to finish off the remaining men standing before him- thunderbolt. He shocked their insides to the point of combustion, turning their outsides a disturbing shade of charcoal gray. She watched as the pair of men fell to the floor- _wait_! _Pair_?! There were supposed to be _three_! Snarling, she began scanning the area in search of the third man- he must have slipped off while her eyes had been on his crippled ally. Anxiety swelled in the back of her mind as her eyes darted around the landscape in front of her- the missing man was nowhere to be spotted. Well, not in _front_ of her at least- a sudden shuffling sound from behind made her all to aware of her mistake. She turned just in time to see a glowing red blade flying towards her face- it was to late for her to try and block or jump away. Cringing, she clenched her eyes closed and waited for the pain- but instead, she felt something warm, and wet, splash onto her face. Snapping her eyes open again, she gasped quietly at the sight she was met with.

The Zoroark had taken the blow- he must've seen the human come up behind her, and he protected her from the fatal blow. He'd taken the blade through his abdomen- it was a painful wound, but not a deadly one so long as he didn't strain himself. Tilting her head slightly, she peered around his side, under his arm, to look at the human that had snuck up on her. The Zoroark had the man by his head- the fox Pokemon's claws were digging into his scalp. Faintly, she heard her savior growl at the man, and she caught a slight twitch of his claws, before she heard the sound of bone crumbling. The Zoroark had crushed the mans skull- the humans brain poured out from between the shattered bones and torn skin. With that, nineteen of the twenty men were lying dead on the ground- the only that remained was trembling beneath Xela's frame like a coward. Without so much as a thought on the matter, she threw her head downwards and latched onto the back of the crippled mans neck- with a quick twisting motion, she snapped his neck. Then, she lifted her head and turned her attention back to the injured Zoroark- he was standing still as stone with the scalding blade slowly cooking the flesh that surrounded it. She could _smell_ cooking meat- the flesh of the Zoroark was very badly burned. He must've been in to much pain to remove the weapon from his body- so she stepped up and took that responsibility. She quickly stepped around the fox Pokemon to stand in front of him, and then she grasped the handle of the heated blade with her jaws, before abruptly stepping backwards. The blade fell free of the Zoroark's, and then he crumbled to the ground, grunting loudly in pain.

"Hey, are you alright?" Xela asked calmly, despite the worry flooding her system. At around that same time, her mega-evolution reversed, and she stood before the Zoroark in her "Natural" form. All she was given in response was grunt of pain, and an agonized expression. That was it- she came forwards and hoisted the injured Pokemon onto her back, ignoring the intense pain that erupted from her shoulder. He wasn't as heavy as she'd expected, but he was still hard to carry. Casting a silent glance around the area, she spotted her vest- she'd have to abandon in for the time being. She could easily come back for it once she'd gotten the Zoroark to shelter. So, she started the painstaking task of carrying him away from the battle site- but she hadn't even taken three steps when she heard a voice calling out to her.

"Wait!" The voice, a _childes_ voice, called loudly, catching her attention. She immediately fell still and turned her head in the direction of the sound, just in time to see a Happiny rushing towards her. When the small, pink, Pokemon reached the wounded pair, she quickly spoke to the.  
"You saved me from those men! I can't just let you wander the forest with those wounds!" The Happiny said boldly, her eyes on the Zoroark- that probably explained how he had been captured in the first place.  
"Come home with me, you two can stay until your wounds are healed!" She said while panting quietly, the whole ordeal had gotten her pretty shaken up. After a moment, Xela decided to speak up.

"Alright, we'll come...But, would you do me a favor and grab that vest over there?" Xela asked calmly, her voice somewhat strained from the pain in her shoulder, as she flicked her head in the direction of her vest. Not a moment later, the Happily bounced over to the intended item, and picked it up happily.

"Sure! And I'll get Mr. Zoroark's sword to!" The Happiny said with a smile, before bounding over to the nearby bushes- the handle of a sword could be seen protruding from them. Funny, the Absol hadn't even noticed the hidden blade- she watched as the tiny Pokemon struggled to free it from the bushes. Then, as soon as it was free, the Happiny bounced towards the trees.  
"Alright, now follow me! My parents and I don't live to far from here!" She said excitedly as she bounced away, pausing only a few moments at a time to allow Xela a chance to catch up with her. The trip itself was long, despite the relatively short distance between the battle site and the Happiny's home- the Absol just had to move slowly because of the pain in her shoulder, and she didn't want to accidentally drop the Zoroark she had on her back. When the trio finally reached their destination, Xela was ready to collapse, the Zoroark had long since passed out, and the Happiny had rushed to get her mother. Within minutes, the pair of wounded Pokemon were being tended to by a Blissey and three Chansey. Starting with the Zoroark, they tended the various gashes on his arms and legs- those lacerations being the result of fighting his bindings. They treated his bleeding feet- he had somehow run the pads clean off of them. The took turns working on the burned flesh of his abdomen, slowly helping the injury close and heal properly. Then, they checked him for any broken bones, and inspected his teeth for signs of illness. When the fox was given a clean bill of health, the Blissey and the trio of Chansey turned their attention to Xela.

They easily treated her shoulder, which was the only noticeable wound on her body, then they began to inspect the rest of her. They checked for broken bones by firmly grasping at her joints and limbs, occasionally pressing their "Hands" against her ribcage to test for damage. They parted her fur constantly, mistaking the red stains on her fur for signs of bleeding. Her rear right was was inspected, though they quickly realized that the missing claw was a deformity and not an injury. Her horn was looked over- the crack alarmed them, but they soon left it be. The only way to possibly treat the horn would be to break it completely, then apply herbs and hope that it grew back. The last thing they did was inspect her teeth, and they tenderly inspected her broken fang. At one point they offered to pull the damaged tooth, but she immediately turned them down- as it was the fang gave her no pain, but having it yanked out would undoubtedly be agony. However, further examination of her other teeth showed that she was malnourished- the Blissey immediately stated that she wouldn't be allowed to leave until her body was in better health. To prove that point, the Blissey had two of the Chansey lead Xela into the hollow log they called a home, and the Absol was swiftly told to lie down while they went to get her some food. Not long after, the Blissey and the last Chansey carried the fainted Zoroark inside- they placed him next to Xela and set out to tend to other business. So, with the log mostly empty, Xela took the opportunity to get a better look at the Zoroark she'd, lets say "Rescued".

Glancing over his sleeping frame, she noticed the crystal blue markings on his face also ran along his muzzle- almost making him look like he had gotten messy while eating berries. She also noticed that he was thinner than she'd thought he was- but she couldn't tell if that was because of not eating enough, or because his experiments had changed him that drastically. Re-thinking that matter she realized that if he had been underfed, he would have also been malnourished. Seeing as the Chansey's deemed him healthy aside from his injuries, she decided that it was the fault of man for him having such a lithe frame. Chancing a closer inspection, she moved to stand over him to get a better view. She lent down to specifically look at his face- then his eyes suddenly snapped open. In a blink of an eye she was flipped over and pinned onto her back by the startled Zoroark, who was eying her intently. He didn't look mad per say, just a little confused- he was somewhat disoriented from the battle. To say that Xela was a little uncomfortable with the current situation would have been an understatement- she rarely got this close to other Pokemon, hell, she'd been incredibly uncomfortable when the Chansey's were examining her. However, it would have been a lie if she said that she didn't find the change of view, interesting. For one, she had an excellent view of his eyes- a view she found more comforting that intimidating. She could tell that he wasn't judging her, well, at least not the way that other Pokemon tended to. The judgment in his eyes was meant to determine enemy from ally.

He wasn't looking at her and staring at her oddities- he cared not about her bloodstained fur, or her deformities. In fact, he didn't even seem to _notice_ them. They were two beings of the same pain- so it was natural for them to view each-other as what they were, not what they looked like. Yes, she had judged his appearance, but not because she found him odd or because she wanted a reason to look down on him- she wanted a better _understanding_ of him, of his _pain_. When the Zoroark decided that she was of no threat to him, he moved off of her and ventured to the farthest part of the log to lie back down and go back to sleep. As soon as he was off of her, Xela rolled back over and watched him as he wandered off- he didn't seem irritated, but she could tell that he wanted to be left alone. So, despite her strong urge to leave the log and go about her business, she made herself comfortable and allowed herself to get some rest. Besides, she was in no rush- and she wanted a chance to get to know the Zoroark better.

Alright. Review. Offer a character submission. Do whatever you want. ^^


	4. Chapter 3

Woo-hoo! Got another chapter done! It took me 3 attempts to get it started properly so that the story could flow- damn, this was a tough one for me.

Sorry guys, we only learn the Zoroark's name this chapter- we'll look more into his blade in the next one, I promise!

Before I forget, special thanks to

illuminari storyteller

for sending me the Zoroark character! ^^

Enjoy this chapter everyone XD

/

A small, white paw, gently dipped into the still water of a small lake. The paw was held there, just below the surface, before the leg was slowly dropped inside. Not long after, a second leg descended into the water. Then, all movement stopped for a while as the owner of the limbs stared down into the water. Xela, after spending three days under the endless care of the Blissey family, and ventured to this lake to clear her thoughts- to let her mind wander would have probably been a better phrase. Her expression blank, she continued to stare down at her reflection in the water, purposely shifting her weight onto one side to provoke steady rippling atop the waters surface. She watched silently as the ripples grew, slowly and silently, only to disappear as they faded out of existence. So many questions were running through her mind, so many emotions that she had yet to sort through. At least a week had passed since the incident with the Magicarp at the lake-Czar had unearthed thoughts she'd had buried in the depths of her mind for years. No, not thoughts, _longings_- family, love, a sense of belonging. Yes, she'd openly admitted to herself on many occasions that she'd wanted a family. However, this was the first time since her parents died, since she'd felt the dull throb of heartache- since she'd acknowledged her inner desire for what she'd lost all those years ago. The sickest part about it was that she had no recollection of how many years had passed since the demise of her family- hell, she didn't even know how long she'd spent in the settlements to begin with.

Every moment spent in that hellhole felt years- her underdeveloped body and mind had no means of coping with the stress. She'd known only darkness while in her prison room, and she was only granted a few fleeting moments in the light during the random visits to-well, she didn't have it in her to think about it. So, she never knew what time it was. Since the visits were random she had no way of knowing how many days had passed between the nightmarish events. She may have been trapped in the settlements for as little as a week, or as long as ten years. Not that it mattered anymore, the damage done to her sense of time was so intense that she'd yet to fully recover. She'd wake knowing it was morning, and in the blink of an eye she'd find the sun setting over the horizon- then she'd have no idea if the sun was setting on the same day she woke, or if she'd been so out of it that more than one day had passed since her waking. Without a sound, she stepped forward to walk the rest if the way into the water, submerging her underside and hind legs as she went. For a fraction of a second, a content look appeared on the Absol's face as she felt the water come into contact with her skin- the water was cold, but it felt nice. Closing her eyes for a moment, she sighed happily and tilted her head back- she'd been needing some time to herself for days now. With the Blissey family fussing over her half the day, and the Zoroark silently staring at her the _entire_ day, she'd been growing increasingly irritated during her time in "Rehab"- or at least thats what she'd come to call it.

The only reasons she hadn't taken off, were the fact that the Blissey had been seeing to it that she didn't make it far out of the log before being confronted, and that she still wanted to get to know the Zoroark. Her expression soured somewhat at that thought. She'd been _trying_ to get to know the Zoroark since day one, but every attempt she made was of no use. She'd tried initiating a conversation only to retrieve a blank stare, and on a few occasions, a quiet grunt. She'd offered him portions of her food in exchange for parts of his- she and the Zoroark were being given different foods, for reasons that only the Blissey knew about. However, every attempt at trading ended with him completely ignoring her offer, before he eyed her with an intense stare. Sighing irritatedly, she dropped her head enough to submerge her mouth in the water- she blew a few bubbles out of spite. Honestly, she was starting to get annoyed with _everyone_. The Zoroark bothered her because he remained dead silent, and constantly stared at her- and she meant _constantly_. She'd woken up on more than one occasion to find him staring at her- meaning that he'd been watching her sleep. As for her reasons for being cross with the Blissey family, there were a number of them. First off, there always seemed to be someone keeping an eye on her- she was pretty sure that Joy, the Happiny, was spying on her from the bushes. Then there were the constant physical check ups- she'd been given as least two or three a day since the Blissey treated her wounded shoulder. They'd test her reflexes, check her teeth for signs of improvement- they'd even had the gall to try and wash the bloodstains out of her fur.

The constant handling was slowly but surely making her want to bite them- if not for her sense of self control, she probably would have already. Then there was the food. Yes, she was malnourished. Yes, the Blissey and her family members probably knew more about the food sources in the area than she did- but that didn't mean that they had to control every little thing she ate. The Zoroark was given different foods everyday, meaning that he was given variety- but Xela was being given no such treatment. She, had been put on a strict diet of eggs, berries, and fungus. Sure, the food tasted fine, and it was probably better for her than what she tended to eat on a regular basis- when she _bothered_ to eat at least. The problem was that she was given no _variety_. Chansey eggs, Oran berries, blue tree fungus- everyday it was the exact same food. They wouldn't even let her cook it. She'd gotten to the point where she was willing to mix all three of the foodstuffs together to try and gain a new flavor- all she managed to do was make herself gag. Blowing more bubbles in the water, she sighed irritatedly and moved her feet around a bit. She'd come to the lake to try and calm herself down, to try to relax and let herself unwind- but all she seemed to be doing was antagonize herself further. Seemed it was time for her to take, more _drastic_ measures. Glancing around, she checked to see if the Happiny, or any of the other members of the Blissey family seemed to be nearby. She couldn't see, smell, or hear them, so she guessed that they must've decided to leave her alone for a while.

With the coast clear, she paddled her feet and moved further into the lake, quickly finding a spot deep enough to submerge the rest of her body. Without so much as a thought, she dived beneath the water and dug her claws into the murky ground to keep from floating back to the surface- then she fell completely still. She didn't know when she'd started doing this, nor did she know what it calmed her down so much- all she knew was that when she was underwater, she felt at peace. What was really unique about the situation, was that she could stay underwater for a very long time before she felt the need to resurface for air. Twenty-five minutes minutes was her limit thus far, and she was sure that over time, she'd get to the point where she could go for an hour without air. The trick to her odd talent was remaining completely calm- so calm, that her heart rate slowed to an incredibly low pace. There weren't any other Absol in the world with her ability to say underwater, and not drown. She could recall one incident, when she had opened her mouth to take a breath. She'd felt the water rush down her throat and fill her lungs, but it neither choked her nor drowned her- it just left her body when she exhaled. _That_, was how calm she became while underwater, and as the recollection of that incident entered her mind, she decided to give the experience another go. Slowly, to not break the calmness of her body, she opened her mouth and closed her eyes. Without the slightest fear of what may happen, the took a deep intake of breath, and she felt the water quickly fill her lungs- then she held it there. While a normal, land dwelling Pokemon would find the sensation of cold water in the lungs painful, she found it oddly pleasant.

The pressure on her insides neither frightened her, nor harmed her. When she chose to exit the water and breath air, there was no urge to cough, no stinging sensation in her chest- no trouble breathing whatsoever. Content with time having water in her lungs, she slowly exhaled the water- but just as the last of it was about to exit her body, something _grabbed_ her. In an instant, her peaceful state was shattered. Her heart rate jumped, her body reacted, she took a sharp intake of breath, and she began to drown. Then, as she was yanked out of the water by whoever had grabbed hold of her, she was smacked firmly on the back, and forced to exhale the fluid that threatened to suffocate her. Coughing uncontrollably, she was pulled against a strong chest and pulled back to shore- she collapsed onto the muddy ground and proceeded to expel the water she had swallowed. Her chest heaved, air was painfully forced in at out of her lungs. Her voice rang painfully with every cough, her eyes pressed tightly closed as she attempted to recover from the unexpected ordeal. Then, after minutes of uncontrollable coughing and wheezing passed, she slowly opened her eyes and stared at the wet earth beneath her. _That_, had been her first experience with the sensation of drowning- the first time she'd nearly drowned. No wonder so many Pokemon strived to avoid being underwater- drowning was more painful than she'd thought it was. Panting, she shook her head in an attempt to steady herself, before she abruptly turned to the side to see who had yanked her out of the water and thrown her into such a panicked state.

Much to her surprise, and to her dismay, she found the Zoroark staring down at her- _he_ had been the one that nearly made her drown. Shakily, she turned more to face him properly, her legs wobbling beneath her shaken frame. Ignoring her all the time and refusing to talk to her was one thing, but nearly making her drown was the last straw. As soon as she regained her ability to speak, the stamped her feet into the ground and proceeded to _chew his ass out_.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Xela shouted angrily, the fur on her neck and along the middle of her back rising.  
"What?! Did you think it would be funny to watch me almost drown?! What is your problem, what did I ever do to you?!" She snarled angrily as she strode forwards, jumping up and standing on her hind legs once she was directly in front of the silent Zoroark. She was still a few feet shorter than him, but at least she'd gained enough height to give him a piece of her mind.  
"I have been trying to get you to say something for days! But all you do is sit there and stare at me like you've never seen another living thing before! What?! Do I look so odd to you that you can't take your eyes off of me for one _fucking_ minute?! Well look in the mirror crystal face, cause I'm not the only _freak_ around here!" She continued to shout, extending one of her upper legs to smack him in the chest as she ranted at him.  
"You wont talk, all you do is stare- I don't even know your _name_ yet! I already told you mine! Show some friggin manners and introduce yourself! Act like you know what I'm saying- do something, _anything_, just stop staring at me all the time, your freaking me out!" She shouted loudly, her voice loosing some of its anger and taking on a tinge of confusion. As usual, all the Zoroark seemed capable of doing was standing there and staring at her like she'd spontaneously grown a second head. Was a response really that much to ask for? Because the Zoroark certainly seemed to act like it was.

Groaning loudly in defeat, the illusionary fox' stare succeeding in making her more nervous than she was angry, Xela slumped onto the ground, lied down, and proceeded to bury her face in the mud. Honestly, of all the experimented Pokemon she could come into contact with, she had to find the one that seemed _incapable_ of any form of communication. She'd of screamed into the ground had he not been standing right in front of her- no point in making a bigger fool of herself. Then, there was an unexpected change of events- the Zoroark decided to speak. About time.

"_Lance_..." The Zoroark said quietly, his voice barely more than a whisper- but Xela still heard it. In an instant, she yanked her face out of the mud and stared up at the illusionary fox, her eyes wide with surprise.

"W-what..?" Xela asked hesitantly, her voice stuttering a bit. Either she was going crazy- er, _crazier_, or the Zoroark had actually spoken to her. After a minute or so of complete silence, she was given her answer to that question.

"My name...Is Lance..." The Zoroark, _Lance_, said slowly, as he extended an arm to introduce himself properly. After a moment of complete bewilderment, Xela lifted one of her paws and let him take hold of her- he helped her stand up as they shook "Hands".

"Oh...Well, h-hello Lance...It is a pleasure to, meet you..." Xela said hesitantly as she stood up, eying the Zoroark suspiciously- his eyes remained unchanged, but the crystal markings on his face seemed to be glowing more than they did before. Though she found that odd, she decided to leave that particular matter alone. Besides, she had something more important to talk about.  
"Did, you, come all the way out here just to tell me your name?" She asked slowly, a suspicious tone in her voice- Lance immediately nodded, and she groaned internally. Seriously? He was going to say one thing to her, after being silent as a rock for days, only to immediately revert back to being quiet? Scratch that, silent as a rock wasn't the way to put it, because there were rocks that made more noise than him. Sighing, she sat down and bowed her head slightly in momentary defeat- but then a though crossed her mind. Lance had yanked her out of the water, and she'd been in the center of the lake. She also knew that the water was to dark to see more than a few inches, so not even her white fur would have been noticeable from the surface- all of that meant that the Zoroark had no means of spotting her in the water. So, if it wasn't possible to see her, then how did he know she was underwater? The answer to that question was simple- he had watched her go into the water. As in, he had been in the area, staring at her from an unknown location, long before the idea of going for a swim even crossed her mind. In an instant the rage she had felt earlier returned with a vengeance.

"Hey! Were you spying on me?!" Xela exclaimed, jumping back onto her feet and puffing out her to demonstrate her agitation. No sooner had the question passed her lips, had a nervous look appeared on Lance's face. No doubt about it- he had followed her here and watched everything she'd done before she went underwater. Then, he'd probably flipped out when she didn't resurface after a few minutes, which would explain his suddenly grabbing her and nearly making her drown.  
"Uwa..! You, you creep! I'd have half a mind to claw your eyes out and make you smell your way around from now on!" She said in a shocked tone, her eyes wide and her expression one of anger and embarrassment- she should have realized that she was being watched. Not one second later, Lance lent down and closed his eyes to allow the Absol to do as she pleased- the motion both shocked and frightened Xela. Was he being serious?  
"W-what? You didn't actually take me seriously did you? No! That would be a death sentence you idiot! I'd of been better off letting the humans have you if I planned on seeing you dead!" She said nervously, lifting one of her legs up as if to block a blow to the chest. Honestly, she thought he looked like he was trying to receive punishment for something- that meant he had a type of nature that lead him to repay wrongdoings by accepting odd punishments or tasks.

So, she stood still and thought her next response over for a few minutes. She honestly didn't want to hurt him, nor did she think he honestly wanted her to harm him. Then, maybe she could get him to give her something- that something being the information she'd been trying to coax out of him for days. The issue was that Lance didn't seem to be the talking type- the gruff, quiet ring to his voice meant that he had not spoken a word in a very long time. Luckily for her, she knew exactly how to get around that particular issue- she only needed to get him to agree to it.

"Neh, do you really want to repay me- repay me because you nearly drowned me?" Xela asked slyly, putting her paw back on the ground and watching intently as the Zoroark nodded his head and opened his eyes.

"Well, if that's the case, then I want to know who you are..." She said slowly- a confused look appeared on Lance's face, though, his eyes remained oddly calm.

"But...I already...I..." Lance said hesitantly, his voice quiet and strained from lack of use- though the point he was trying to get across rang loud and clear. Good, she had his attention. Now all she needed to do was coax him into agreeing to, her _odd_ request.

"That's not what I mean..." Xela said calmly, shaking her head for a moment before sitting back down. She was about to get into a very long, one sided conversation- she might was well get comfortable.  
"I want to know everything else I've asked about you these past few days. Where you were born, what your parents- your _family_, was like. I want to know how you became...What you are today..." She said slowly, and in a calm tone of voice, being sure to watch every one of Lance's reactions. The Zoroark's expression went from blank, to confused, to curious, back to blank, and then the process continued. Good, his attention was secured.  
"I want to know how you escaped, how long you've been free- how long you were captive. The list goes on forever, and I have an easy way for us both to get what we want out of this..." She said, pausing for a split second to raise an eyebrow at the Zoroark, who attempted to return the gesture- however, it seemed that moving his eyebrows was not a renounced talent. All he managed to do was lift both of them and unintentionally stare at her wide eyed- Xela would have laughed had she not intended on keeping the situation serious.  
"...Interested?" She said calmly after her short pause, before falling completely silent to wait and see if Lance would give her a reply- verbal or otherwise.

For a long time, the area remained dead silent as the Zoroark picked through his thoughts. He'd close his eyes a moment, then re-open them and scan the area calmly. He'd shift his weight from foot to foot to give his legs periodic times of rest. His ears would twitch with the slight breeze, and he'd flex his claws in concentration. Once or twice he tilted his head sideways, and stared awkwardly at the Absol, who calmly returned his stare- though it may have unnerved her slightly. Then, after what seemed like hours, but was in reality only a few minutes, Lance offered a short nod, signaling that he had interest in what Xela had in mind. When he nodded, he made an "Uhh" sound that sounded almost like a hiss.

"Alright then..." Xela began, shifting her weight a bit to sit more on one side than the other- she was halfway laying down and halfway sitting.  
"I have...A _unique_ talent that, lets me see into the memories of others while I dream...If I lie next to you tonight, while you sleep, I can look into your memories and see everything I want to know, as you remember it..." She said slowly, her voice taking on a tinge of nervousness as Lance's expression changed. He still looked a little confused, but she could tell that he was doubting whether or not he wanted someone, _invading_ his mind like that. Nevertheless, she intended on telling him everything that happened during her little, well, she hadn't given the skill a name yet. She'd have to think of one as some point.  
"But, there, are a few side effects- I won't lie to you about that..." She said, before taking a momentary pause to make sure he was giving her his undivided attention. Once content, she continued.  
"Once we start, you wont be able to wake up until I do, and the ordeal can be...Very challenging on our bodies, and our minds. You may wind up dreaming about my past for a few days, or weeks afterwards. I may be unable to stop dreaming about your memories- for how long, I have no idea. When we wake, we'll both feel sick to our stomachs. Our bodies will be trembling, and we'll be covered in sweat even though our bodies will feel deathly cold. Aside from that, I don't know of any other side effects..." She said calmly, before falling silent for a moment to stare up into Lance's eyes- he seemed lost in thought.  
"But if you don't want to do it, then we're going to stay out here all night, and we're going to _talk_. And I don't mean I'll say something and you listen- I mean I'll ask something and you _answer_..." She added, more as encouragement for the Zoroark to agree to her, using her talent on him, than anything else.

As expected, Lance remained silent for a very long time. He was thinking over the expectations of both his options- he didn't really seem to think that he could deny both of them and go about his merry way. While he thought he did virtually the same things he had done before he decided to take interest in what Xela had in mind- the only difference was that the markings on his body would light up for a few seconds, only to dim down and nearly vanish. This particular sight really caught the Absol's attention- either he had complete control over how brightly his markings lit up, or, they took on a glow depending on his thought process. Either way, she found the dimming and brightening of his crystal blue markings oddly fascinating- she didn't realize that aspects of her own body seemed to sync up with his changes. Namely, her pupils would overly dilate whenever his markings took on a brighter shine, and they would narrow almost to the point of disappearing. Had she realized that her eyes were doing this, she'd of had no idea why they were- but she would have promptly looked into it. Then, after the long period of silence passed, the Zoroark decided to make his decision known.

"I'll...Go with the dream..." Lance said hesitantly as he lifted one of his "Hands" to scratch the side of his head, right below his ear. Going with the option that required less speech seemed to be the best one for him- even if it made him somewhat nervous.

"Alright then..." Xela said calmly.  
"Tonight, after we've eaten...We can do it then..." She said before standing completely up, and turning towards the water.  
"As for right now, I'm not quite ready to go back...You, run on ahead. I'll catch up with you once I've gone for a swim..." She said quietly, before dropping her feet into the water and diving in- she wanted to wash the mud off her fur, and experience the calmness that the water gave her for a while longer. Then, she'd go back to the log, choke down the meal that the Blissey would undoubtedly for her to eat, and she'd get prepared for the nights events. Once ready, she'd lie down next to, or on top of Lance, and they'd both go to sleep. What she hadn't told the Zoroark was that her talent was involuntary- if someone had previously been standing on a spot, and then she lied down on that spot and went to sleep, she'd dream about that someone. She'd actually been having dreams about members of the Blissey family for the past few days. Those thoughts in mind, the Absol dove to the deepest part of the lake, and sunk her claws into the mud to stay in place. Then, she decided to see if nearly drowning had altered her ability to inhale water and not choke on it...

/

Alright, before you ask- NO! XELA IS NOT A WATER TYPE!  
The whole ordeal with "Breathing underwater" could be one of two things.  
1. She's just that calm underwater  
2. The experiments gave her the ability to breath underwater- as in, she has a set of aquatic lungs inside of her normal lungs. She just can't switch between the sets unless she's completely calm. So, startling her would lead to her lungs suddenly switching from "Aquatic" to "Land" while underwater.

As for her, other talent. The one we wont see until next chapter. I want YOU, my viewers, to come up with a name for it. If not, I'll just start calling it "Dreamscape" or something. I'll let this...Idk, poll? Build up options for a few chapters before I decide to name it- as in, it won't be named until the next time Xela uses it.

Until then-

Comments? Reviews? Character offers? Flying purple octopuses? XD Disregard that last option ^^


	5. Authors note 1

Authors Note

Alright guys, I just posted the third chapter of the story, and I have a few things to run by.

**First off**- I'm pretty sure that I made this clear in the prologue, but, ALL of the legendary Pokemon, except for Arceus are DEAD. They have been destroyed and were used to create new legendaries called "Artificial" or "Test-tube" legendaries. That being said, if you send me a character who is the offspring of an ORIGINAL legendary (one from the anime/game), I will NOT use it- unless you create an "Artificial Legendary", and send me the info on that one.

So, if you've sent me a character that is the spawn of an Original legendary, I ask that you create and send me an Artificial legendary. If you do that, I can just switch around the parent species stuff to put the correct parent in- because I save every character offered to me in a special file on my laptop. I do this to keep track of everything, and to remember who I have and haven't decided to use. I usually label the end with "Decision: Accepted/ Rejected/ Undecided". Accepted characters get in, rejected characters do not- and undecided characters, well, I'll explain that.

If I message you back and say that your character is undecided, then that means I want to use it, because I think people will like it, but, I haven't figured out how to introduce them in the story. So, wait around until I either figure it out or abandon my quest to install them.

**Next on the list**- I am making a personal promise to anyone who leaves a review/comment or ANYTHING- I will message all of you to say my thanks, ask questions on characters sent to me, and anything else. PLUS, at the end of the story ALL of you will be given a special page- I'll post everyone's user names on it, and there is a special surprise for all of you, but I will not reveal it at this time. Sorry, you'll have to wait on that.

As for characters- If you send me one, I'm giving you a bonus. Send me a character, get a picture of them in return. I'll be posting links to them on another "Authors Note" once I get enough of them done. If I am unable to create a pic of your character because I've found it to difficult to make well enough, I'll tell you and accept a request for another pic.

**On another note**- Every now and again I'll put up a message asking for specific types of characters. These are VERY important, and will wind up playing an important role. I won't ask for a specific look, but I might ask for a specific gender/age/bla bla bla.

Also, I will eventually be requesting **human characters and legendary characters** when I do this, I will tell you what I'm looking for.

**Fun stuff**- This is for anyone who thinks I have a plan on getting characters together-(A.E. Xela and Lance), the answer is: NOT UP TO ME. ^^

I'll actually be putting up pages where I ask my fans who they want getting together- I'll do it for one specific character at a time, and post all choices for that character along with it. So, if you have a pairing your looking for, wait for those pages to start popping up, because it'll be drawn down to a VOTE.

**As of now**- Okay, so, as of now, I don't have many requests of my own- but I do have some.

I need a name for Xela's "talent" mentioned in the 3rd chapter. So, leave a name for this ability, and I'll go with whichever I like best.

This is more for me than anyone else. As I've stated before, this is my first fanfiction and I am new to this site. So, if you have any friends, point this story out to them. I'd love to start getting more reviews/characters/comments and such.

Enjoy the story ^^

And there we have it- my first authors note. Hope I've made things clear.


	6. Chapter 4

Alright, yet another chapter over and done with! Woo! Go me!

I actually put off writing this for about two days because I had no idea how to get it started- I was sure that this chapter was going to be a BITCH! But, once I started writing, I was pleased to find that I immediately found my natural rhythm and got it going.

Now, this is going to be a very..._Heated_ chapter. There are a lot of suggestive jokes, and towards the end I come right out and state exactly what looked like it was happening while Xela and Lance. But hey, don't just take my word for it, read on ahead and let the nosebleeds begin!  
*Suggestive laughter starts off in the background*

/

Hesitantly, Xela presses a paw against the surface of Lance's chest, gently pushing him onto his back. The Zoroark lies down without word of defiance, though there is a questioning look in his eyes- but this was not to be unexpected. He was nervous- both of them were. Neither of them had done something, _intimate_, in a number of years. So, in that sense, neither of them were used to it. She slowly climbed on top of him and lied down, her back legs on either side of his abdomen and her front paws resting heavily on his shoulders- her head came just beneath his chin. In response to the sudden weight on his body, Lance lifted his "Hands" and wrapped them firmly around Xela's back, pressing her closer to him as he steadied her frame. The Absol tensed her muscles instinctively at the unexpected gesture- she hadn't meant to react in such a way, but it couldn't be helped. At least she could be grateful for the lack of prying eyes- the Blissey and her family members had left a short time ago to take part in a family reunion. So with luck the pair could go about their business without interruption. After a moment her muscles relaxed and she allowed her head to dip down into the curve of the Zoroark's neck- she unintentionally inhaled his scent as she closed her eyes and prepared for the upcoming events. He smelled musty, like leaf mulch and fertile soil. She had to admit that she liked his scent, it calmed her down immensely- it reminded her of home. Well, the home she'd lost after her time in the settlements anyways.

"Are you comfortable..?" Xela asked quietly- a split second later she felt the Zoroark nod his head.  
"If you want to back out, nows the time...Because once I fall asleep, theres no going back..." She said slowly, her voice growing groggy- his smell was making her a little to comfortable, she was on the verge of passing out. She was given no response to her last statement, Lance remained still- he could tell that she was falling asleep on him, and he could feel her ability lulling him into a peaceful state. If things continued at this pace, they'd fall asleep at the same time. Still, they both desperately fought the desire to give into their dreams- their minds were wondering aimlessly around. How had they gotten into this situation? There were a lot of answers to that. Xela saved Lance from humans. Lance nearly drowned Xela and blackmailed him. They'd decided that the best way to make sure Xela viewed Lance's memories and not the memories someone else was to have her lie on him while he slept. Why were they so at ease? They enjoyed each-others scent, and thus they relaxed. How long would the Blissey family be gone? There was no answer to that. Questions and answers ran through both their minds as sleep gradually overtook their bodies, until they eventually fell into a deep slumber, and their adventure began...

/

_ There was a shiny Zorua lying in the center of a spacious cave, dried grass and straw covered most of the stone beneath his frame- Xela knew that it was Lance that she was looking at. He was cute as pup. A sudden sound woke Lance from his slumber, and he groggily moved to his feet before exiting the cave. He carefully climbed down the slope leading to the bottom of the mountain that the cave was in, and his body immediately went rigid..._

/

Xela's feet were twitching, her eyes were squeezed tightly closed. Her breathing was growing shallow. Beneath her, Lance was beginning to respond in a similar manner. His chest was rising and falling faster than it should have been- his mouth opened slightly to allow his breath to leave his body without restraint. His left ear twitched with every other breath. The first stage of Xela's ability was starting to take place...

/

_ Another Zorua, a female one, was being hacked to pieces by a small group of humans. All of her legs were severed from her body. Her ears were cut off. The humans slashed at her unguarded face, cutting her mouth wide open- her right eye was gouged out with the tip of a small blade. The Zorua was screaming in agony, tears freely falling from her eyes- the tears running from her right mixed with her blood, and so half of her face was painted crimson. Xela could sense the bile rising in the back of her throat as she witnessed these events- she could tell that the Zorua was a newborn by the way she cried. The humans were hacking a baby to pieces- they were torturing a helpless being that had no means of begging them for mercy. When the humans tired of hearing the helpless Zorua's screams, they drove their blades into her back- four blades struck one heart. There was no chance of her surviving that kind of an injury..._

/

A quiet whimper rose in the back of Xela's throat, the images she was seeing igniting a mixture of pained emotions that threatened to bring her to tears. Her breathing had grown even quicker- now she was panting heavily, her face buried in the Zoroark's neck as she attempted to find comfort in his scent. Below her, Lance was gritting his teeth in an attempt to slow his ragged breathing- every breath he took came paired with a loud hissing sound. In search of stability, he tightened his grasp around the Absol's back and pulled her closer to his frame- his claws digging painfully into the skin of her back. One sudden movement, and he'd tear her back open- then the pair would wake doused in blood...

/

_ Not far from the now dead Zorua, a pair of adult Zoroark fought vainly against another group of humans. These Zoroark were obviously Lance's parents- the dead Zora had probably been his newborn sister. Speaking of, the look on Lance's face was one of utter horror- the poor child had no idea what to do or how to respond to what he was seeing. He was in shock- he couldn't even cry. All he could do was stand deathly still, and watch with wide eyes as his parents were slain by the humans. His parents took numerous blows to the chest and abdomen- his fathers entrails spilled from his body shortly after a blade sliced through his gut. Not a moment later, the male Zoroark's head was cut clean off his body- Lance's mother called out in agony upon witnessing her mate's death. Then, is vain desperation to protect her mate- a mate that beyond rescue, she charged the men that had taken her lovers life. Her actions ensured her demise- one of the men thrust his blade into her chest as she pounced upon him. The blow struck her heart directly, and death came instantaneously- and so her pained expression remained on her features even as she expelled her final breath..._

/

A louder noise was forced from Xela's now trembling frame, the images she saw flashing in the back of her mind beginning to take physical effect on her body. Her temperature was dropping, and yet a thin layer of perspiration was becoming apparent on her skin. She was shivering uncontrollably, all of her limbs were twitching- she subconsciously dug her claws into the skin of Lance's shoulders. Every slight movement of her legs threatened to make her tear the Zoroark's skin to shreds. The same went for Lance- he was twitching uncontrollably. The tips of his claws were on the verge of breaking the skin of Xela's back. He was shaking his head back and forth in an attempt to shake himself awake, but his attempts were in vain- he could not wake until the Absol lying on top of him did. This was the start of the second stage...

/

_ That was it. Lance snapped. As soon as the humans blade pierced the flesh of his mothers heart, he called out in agony, and drew all attention to his frame. In that instant, his small, feeble body, released a sudden surge of unimaginable power. A thick, black and violet vapor enveloped his frame- it spiraled around his body like a vortex. Like a miniature tornado of power. The spiral created enough suction to pull the water clean out of the grass he was standing on- the water mixed into the tornado to create a hurricane of raw energy. The speed of the vortex was so intense that the water froze and crystallized into snow. The dark energy enveloping Lance's tiny frame was one of pure negative emotion. Rage, fear, pain- the emotions were so intense that a sickening form of evolution was triggered. Then, a violet light erupted from the center of the vortex- the light came from Lance's evolving body- the evolution was so intense that every one of his stats maxed out. With a sudden outburst of pressure, the black vapor and the ice hurtled away from the Zorua no, **Zoroark's**, body. The force was so intense that the snow melted into boiling water- it singed the leaves of the nearby bushes and trees that it landed on. The super heated water pooled in the leaves and remained there, unable to fall to the ground- the pressure being expelled from Lance's body was so intense that it forced the water to remain in the leaves it had pooled in._

_ That pressure- an intense force that seemed to push everything out and away from Lance's newly evolved body, remained even as he charged and attacked the humans that killed his family. With every swing, every blow he made, a small drop of water would escape the confinements of the leaves. With every blow he landed, the pressure being expelled from Lance's body died down somewhat, allowing more water to fall from surrounding tree leave. Every blow paired with a water droplet- it was as if the trees were crying in place of him. The trees were crying the tears that he himself was unable to shed- the shock, the trauma of the ordeal as buried his ability to cry- he **could not** cry..._

/

The Blissey family had returned by this point- Joy, the Happiny, had walked in to find the Absol and the Zoroark trembling madly in each-others embrace. She heard the stifled moans that escaped Xela's shaking body, and the deep hissing sounds that Lance made with every breath he took. To say that the little Happiny was confused would have been an understatement- it was so dark inside the log that she could only see the outline of the pair lying on top of each-other. She could see them squirming- namely the way that Lance shifted his legs in an attempt to move, he only managed to raise his hips. Nelle, the Blissey, also walked in to witness the ordeal- and she swiftly led her youngest daughter back out of the log to give the sleeping pair some privacy. Granted, she didn't realize that they were sleeping...

/

_ The Zoroark continued to throw blows long after the humans were dead- he smashed their bodies with bare hands, stopping only when he ran out of something to hit. He had turned the humans into one conjoined pool of blood, flesh, and bone- one giant pool of finely ground bodies. He was covered in blood- his entire body had been turned crimson he had so much of it on him. As he threw his final blind punch into the bloody mush beneath his frame, the pressure surrounding his body vanished- the remaining water trapped in the leave plummeted to the floor, as did Lance..._

/

None of the members of the Blissey family dared to enter the log- their idea of what was happening compelled them to give the pair some privacy. Nelle had dragged Joy much farther away than the Chancey's had bothered to go- she had to give her daughter a little lecture about the Pidgey and the Beedrill...

/

_ Not even five minutes later, a second group of men- six of them, stepped into the clearing in front of the mountain. These men were obviously scientists. Without a moments hesitation they grabbed Lance, and collected what was left of his sister- they loaded the pair into a transportation vehicle and took them to the settlements. From there, everything that happened became a blur. Lance was put inside a glass chamber filled with thick blue fluid- he was kept in a state of suspended animation while the humans performed a series of experiments on him. He was given injections. His reflexes were tested. The essences of ghost type Pokemon were pumped into the fluid- his DNA merged with ghost genetics, and the blue color of the fluid seeped into his body. His blue markings were little more than stains caused by his DNA fusing with the genetics of a ghost- the glow must have been another effect, seeing as the fluid itself seemed to give off a glow without need of a light source. Other tests were performed- the threw the essences of other elements into the fluid, and his already morphed DNA absorbed the offered elements without restraint. Artificial flames, liquid nitrogen, noxious poisons- these were among the substances mixed into the blue fluid. These were among the things that Lance's body absorbed while he was unconscious. Then, when the scientists became content with their work on his body, they shattered the glass chamber used to hold him, and they deftly attached a mechanical collar to his throat._

_** Attached** was a word being used in a literal sense- a number of thin wires were forced into the flesh of his neck, so far through that they emerged on the opposing side of his throat. The wires were tied together, then welded to the collar to prevent him from removing it- if he tried, he'd undoubtedly tear his own throat out. Though it seemed the collar itself prevented him from trying to remove it- it was a mind control device. The device let him keep most of his awareness- he knew where he was and reacted normally to every revelation thrown his way. However, every time he began to pose a threat to the humans that "Created" him, the device sent out a strong surge of energy. The energy made him collapse onto the ground and clutch his body in pain- it set all of his senses into overdrive. Every sound became unbearable- the slightest touch was agony. Every sense triggered nothing but an agonizing pain. That became routine to him for **years**. The scientists sent him to strike fear into any other humans who made move to oppose their work- then they triggered Lance's pain moments before he could strike a deadly blow on those he was sent after. He was sent to torment, and he was tormented- it was a sickening way of life that he seemed to have no means of escaping. That is, until he found the nerve to put his foot down. When that night came, everything changed._

_ When he finally snapped, he turned to oppose the humans that held him captive, and they immediately commanded the collar to inflict pain upon him- but that was what he had been planning on. The instant the energy flew through his being, he reached up for the collar, latched onto it with his claws, and proceeded to pull on it. The solid metal of the collar was pulled apart, the many thin wires welded to it snapped in half and tore through Lance's throat. He bled heavily, but he didn't care- death was better than living as a tool. He ripped the device clean off his body and chucked it at the humans that had held him captive for so many years- then he charged at them. Sometimes its easy to forget how little effort it takes to kill a human- no wonder they sought to keep him under their control. To bad his will was stronger than their machinery. He killed every human he encountered as he ran through the various halls of the building in search of an exit, and as soon as he was free he bolted into the darkness. He was free of his confinement, but he was still trapped in the human settlements- and he had no idea how to return home. In a state of panic, he activates his illusionary powers and masks himself with the image of a human, then he sets out in search of a way home. He was forced to keep that shape for months- he did his best to avoid people but every now and again one sought him out for conversation. Then, one of those rare instances led to him being given a way to get home. An older human, a male one, approached him late in the night and began speaking to Lance._

_ The human offered him a place to sleep for the night, then proceeded to drag the Zoroark into a building- thats when his true intentions became known. The man claimed that he knew Lance was a Pokemon, and he went out of his way to explain that he posed the Zoroark no threat because of his age. After hours of constant talking, the man convinced Lance to follow him to his home. The illusionary fox remained in the humans home for that night, and the next morning the man literally handed the Zoroark his means of returning home..._

/

Their reactions to the dream were growing more violent. Lance was kicking at some unknown object, and Xela was pressing her mouth into the nape of his neck- her jaws were apart, and her fangs were cutting into the skin of his throat. Their nails had long since dug into each-others skin- Lance's shoulders were bleeding, and Xela's back was ripped open in a number of spots. Both of them were moaning loudly, and the layer of sweat adorning their frames had increased despite their rapidly dropping body temperatures. They were desperately trying to wake- but the power of the dream they were sharing was keeping them asleep. Neither of them could wake until the questions Xela wanted answered, were answered...

/

_ Lance didn't skip a beat. He sprinted in the direction of his childhood home the second he placed his feet on Pokemon territory soil. The trip took days- he ran to the point of tearing the pads off of his feet, but he didn't care. He wanted to be home- he wouldn't be content unless he made it there. When he finally arrived he fell to his knees and screamed loudly in agony- his home had been destroyed. The entire mountain he had lived in, the cave he had been born in, the field his family had been murdered in- everything was **gone**. There was only a huge pile of rubble- rubble that happened to contain substances that most Pokemon strove to avoid. He knew what did this- Larvitar. The little soil eating Pokemon had ransacked his home in search of nourishment- they only left the rock that contained substances which they could not eat. He could **smell** their rock eating hides- he was furious, and yet at the same time he was overcome with grief. Still, he strived to make due with what little he had left- he still had the bones of his dead parents. His sisters body was nowhere to be found. So, he buried the remnants of his family members, made individual gravestones for them, and said a mournful prayer over each of their graves. Though he had nothing to put in his sisters grave, he made her one- he would not be as peace unless he at least **tried** to give his only sibling a proper burial. Then, when all of that was over and done with, he set out and began to rummage through the rubble he once called home. He searched for days on end without coming across anything- and then he came across something valuable in the rubble._

_ A black bladed sword- the same sword the Happiny had picked up when Xela rescued Lance. There were two bladed extensions pointing out from the handle. There was a red insignia on the black blade- it was shaped somewhat like a Zoroark's clawed hand, only enveloped in flames. The two blades protruding from the handle were a vibrant silver color, and the handle itself was a much duller shade of silver- more like aluminum. The blade, it was undoubtedly a family heirloom- the way he ran his claws gingerly along the surface of metal was more than enough to prove that. Once he had the blade, he turned his attention back to his parents graves- he approached them and fell to one knee. Then, he openly declared his lifelong vow- he would protect any Pokemon he encountered from the threat of man. He would live his life only to loose it protecting another- just as his parents had done for him..._

/

The pair woke with a start, their claws immediately piercing into the flesh of each-others bodies- they both winced at the abrupt pain. Xela had completely sheathed her claws in the flesh of Lance's shoulders, and she had unintentionally ripped a piece of his throat out when she jerked her head upwards. Lance had ripped Xela's back open from her shoulder-blades all the way down to her rear- her blood was currently seeping into her fur and running down her sides to drip onto the Zoroark's torso. Had the pair not been so badly shaken they would have immediately apologized to each-other, because neither of them had planned on harming the other. Weakly, Lance sat up despite his shivering frame- he held Xela tightly against him to prevent her from falling backwards. Searching for his own stability, he pressed his nose into the neck of the Absol's neck and inhaled her scent. She smelt nice, almost like flowers- but he couldn't name the flower. Either way, her smell helped him relax a bit- and he could tell that his scent was having the same affect on her. They remained in that position for a long time- for as long as it took their bodies to stop shaking and for their temperatures to return to normal. Xela, being the one who seemed to have been the most affected by the dream, took longer to calm down than Lance. Then, when their bodies had stopped shivering, the pair pulled apart and attempted to move away from each-other.

The Zoroark had little issue because all of his injuries were on his upper body, he didn't have to put any weight on his wounds. The Absol on the other hand, had a much greater problem- her wounds were placed so that no matter where she put her weight, she'd be in pain. So she wound up standing with her weight distributed evenly on her four limb- it lessened the pain, but she was still hurting. She probably would have asked for help had she not been sure her voice would have sounded strained- she didn't want to sound like a crybaby.

"Oh my goodness!" Nelle, the Blissey, shouted as she ran inside the log- never had the Absol ever been so grateful to hear such an annoyingly high pitched voice. No a moment later, the three Chansey and Joy the Happiny came running into the log, and sure enough, they sensed that Xela and Lance were injured, so they did what their breed did best. They set out to tend and heal their injuries. Nelle, being the best medic of the family, took on the responsibility of tending to Xela's wounds without another thought- her four daughters got to work on fixing Lance's shoulders and neck.  
"Oh my, you two really laid into each-other..." Nelle said with something akin to a giggle as she inspected Xela's bleeding back- the claw marks actually looked worse than they actually were, the back just happened to be a really sensitive part of the Absol's body.  
"One would thing that you'd be more gentle when doing something like that..." She added after a moment, her voice sounding somewhat embarrassed. The Absol raised an eyebrow at this- just what was the Blissey getting at.

"What do you mean..?" Xela asked slowly, her voice tinged with pain- the way that Nelle was prodding at her injuries wasn't much help as far as comfort went. She was given a playful giggle in response, before being given an actual reply.

"Well, as far as I know both of your species are well known for your tender love making habits. I never would have guessed that you two were more into- is something wrong?" Nelle said with a playful tone, only to grow curious when she noticed that Xela was covering her face to stifle a groan. Not a second later the Absol turned to the Blissey and proceeded to shout.

"We weren't having _sex_!" Xela shouted at the top of her lungs, earning heavy stares from _everyone_ within the vicinity of the log- not a moment later, her face took on a violet hue. Utterly embarrassed, she chanced a glance in Lance's direction, and she found some relief in knowing that the Zoroark was humiliated as well. Seemed they were both being accused of copulating with each-other. To prevent further embarrassment, the Absol bent her legs and proceeded to bury her face in the ground- she hid her face, and prevented herself from saying something else she would regret in the process.

"Oh...Well then, what were the two of you doing?" Nelle said hesitantly upon hearing the Absol's statement- if it was the truth, then she had needlessly given Joy a very, _detailed_ lecture about how babies were made. Naturally, she was embarrassed as well. Xela lifted her face enough to reply.

"Its...Complicated. But I can assure you, we weren't doing _anything_ like that..." Xela said in a tired tone- she, wasn't prepared for _this_ kind of a conversation.  
"Besides..." She added after a short pause.  
"I don't think its possible for Pokemon to do that while they're asleep..." She said, more to point out the fact that she and Lance were sleeping when the Blissey and her family supposedly walked in on them _making babies_. No sooner had that statement left her mouth had she heard the happiness Pokemon laugh playfully.

"Oh, well I wouldn't be so sure about that. Joy's father was quite a sexsomniac...That's actually how she was conceived." Nelle said in a playful tone, despite the fact that she had just given the Absol a heavy helping of TMI- Xela _really_ didn't need to know that. With a groan, the Absol resumed her face down position, and she buried a scream into the dried grass that coated the underside of the hollow log. Granted, the wood and grass didn't do a very good job at stifling her voice- she knew that everyone was able to hear her, but at that point she didn't care. All she wanted to do was walk out of the log, head back to the lake, and jump in. If she did that, she'd more than likely plant her feet in the bottom of the lake, and try to see how quickly she'd have to breathe if she wanted to drown herself.  
"Are you alright?" The Blissey asked calmly as she lent down to try and snag a peek at the embarrassed Absol's face. A moment later, she heard a muffled "No" sound off from the disaster Pokemon's direction.  
"Would you like something to eat?" She asked after a short period of silence, believing that the Absol was suffering from stomach pains because she had refused to eat earlier- it couldn't have been because of her back, the Blissey had already healed those wounds. Not long after asking the question, she was given another muffled response- "Yes".  
"Anything in particular?" She asked as soon as she was given the reply. To her surprise, Xela lifted her head this time to answer her question.

"Cheri berries, or Roseli berries?" Xela asked in a pleading tone- those berries were on her ironically short list of comfort foods.

"Alright then, I'll go and find you some." Nelle said with a smile before she turned and exited the log, leaving the remaining Pokemon to go about their business.  
/

Thumbs up if this chapter made you run to the bathroom halfway through ^^

(Well, I kept my promise and I put in some information on Lance's sword.)

Hm, now what to say...I'm gonna try to introduce a new character either next chapter or the one after that- there is a _slight_ mentioning of what this new character is hidden in this chapter. Free hugs to anyone whose able to guess who or what this new character is!

Comments? Reviews? Character offers? How about a birthday present? (My birthday was actually January 31st)


	7. Chapter 5

Alright everyone, here it is, chapter numero five.

First off, I'd like to apologize to everyone about how long it took me to get this chapter up- I'd actually been almost done with it about, 4 days ago I believe, but...Well, problems at home arised, shit happened, and I wound up leaving my home to move in with a few relatives. And, lets just say, shit hit the fan when my mom found out I had decided to move out (and free myself from her abusive personality)...If anyone is even vaguely curious, my deviantart page basically has the explanation of what happened to me last week.

Alright, now, my issues aside, lets get back to the topic at hand. The story goes pretty smoothly at first, but, I think there may be a change in how I wrote the last 8 paragraphs or so (maybe not even that), because that basically where I began writing while in a state of emotional shock. Now, if it bothers anyone, I do plan on going back through and possibly re-writing the part of the story that felt kinda funky to me- but I don't know exactly when. As for a few other things...

There is a "New" character introduced here, but, its not exactly the character I had planned on introducing- the real character will show up next chapter I promise. As for the unexpected new character here, I have a plan for him, and he is of importance. Don't know when we'll next see him though... Well, I'm done wasting your time here, go ahead and read the story and, I hope everyone likes it.

/

Paws tread the leafy ground in silence, not doing so much as shifting a blade of grass as they moved. Ears were perked and alert, straining to hear the faintest of sounds past the utter quiet. Noses twitched, taking in the scents of the surrounding area, striving to find the freshest smell. Eyes shifted cautiously from place to place, searching for the slightest hint of movement- or for anything that didn't properly blend into the area. Bodies were tense and rigid, set and ready to charge come the slightest need for quick movement. _This_, was the nature of Pokemon on the hunt. This was how the Absol and the Zoroark behaved while out searching for fresh game. The pair had been traveling like this for hours- they had left the Blissey family's home a day or so prior to escape the embarrassment brought on by, the _incident_. Xela had absolutely no idea why Lance had chosen to accompany her- part of her believed that he didn't really know why either. All she knew was that they had traveled in silence from the moment the left the Blissey's care, up to the current time- she hadn't even bothered trying to talk to him for one reason or another. Part of the reason was that she didn't really feel like talking, and that she knew the Zoroark wasn't one for words- he was the "Strong and silent" type, if that was the correct description. Besides, they seemed to have developed a decent enough understanding of each-other in the past couple of days. In a sense, their communication was based completely on body language. She knew when he wanted to travel and when he wanted to rest by how he placed his feet on the ground.

She could tell the meaning of one grunt from another- his right ear tended to twitch when something upset him. Likewise, Lance had developed a good understanding of Xela's body language. She'd drag the claws of her front feet along the surface of the ground when she was tired- she dragged her back feet when lost in thought. She'd tilt her head to point her horn at the sky when she wanted to check for changes in the weather- the longer she kept her head in that position, the more she was looking for. In fact, he noticed that she used her horn for many things. She'd drag her horn across the ground to check the area for other Pokemon, enemy or otherwise. At one point she'd triggered a vibration in the nerves lining the interior of her horn, the vibration created a quiet humming sound that rang in the back of his ears. He had no idea what purpose that trick was intended for. He'd also caught on to her inferiority complex- she hated being looked down on, and judged based off of her odd appearance and small size. Clearly he understood her as far as odd appearances went, but he'd never really had an issue with people looking down on him- mainly because he was just under seven feet tall and he rarely encountered anyone taller than him. So to make her less nervous around him, he decided to travel on all fours- while they hunted at least. Unlike her, he had the option to travel upright, or like a normal quadruped. Xela paused abruptly, her nose twitching sporadically as she shifted her head from side to side. She had caught the scent of something, something close- something _big_.

The issue was that she couldn't pinpoint which direction the scent was coming from- it was as if the Pokemon she had caught a whiff of had purposely climbed on, or jumped on, everything in the surrounding area. Snarling loudly and sniffing the air at the same time, the Absol began to walk backwards in a circle in an attempt to pinpoint the direction of the smell. Her motions were frantic, almost desperate- somehow Lance had been able to remain completely calm despite being unable to sort out the smell. He was familiar with the technique being used to throw the Absol off of her game, and he knew that there was no use in trying to pinpoint the direction the scent went off in- this trick was designed to make "Oder Sleuth" a complete waste of time. In other words, there was no way to track the Pokemon Xela had sniffed out.

"Don't bother..." Lance said quietly, his voice as dull and emotionless as ever.  
"What you're after can't be tracked..." He added after a split second pause, then he fell completely silent and watched the Absol's reaction to his statement. She fell still as soon as she heard him speak, for fear of being unable to hear him should her footsteps make unwanted noise. She glared at him.

"We'll see about that..!" Xela snarled, before her pupils suddenly narrowed- her horn began to hum. She had triggered the nerve vibration in her horn again, but Lance had no idea why. Only seconds after the humming noise started, the Absol bolted sideways into the nearby brush, and she charged in that direction. On impulse the Zoroark chased after her- he could sense that she had somehow located her target prey, and he knew that her horn had something to do with it. He just didn't know _what_ her horn had to do with it- he'd have to work up the courage to ask her about it later. The pair ran through the forest at top speed- Lance trying to keep up with Xela, who seemed to know exactly where she was going and what she was pursuing. Eventually the sound of running water could be heard in the distance, meaning that the Absol was leading the Zoroark directly to a river- white water rapids according to the volume of the sound. The closer the pair ventured to the river, the louder the water sounded- it eventually hit a volume that sounded more like that of a waterfall than a river. Their suspicions were proved well placed when the pair exited the wood to find themselves standing in the presence of a waterfall- it was a small one, but it was a waterfall nonetheless. The waterfall went about two-hundred or so feet high, and poured into a decent sized lake that lead to a small river. That wasn't the only thing that the pair came across- the Pokemon Xela had chosen as ideal prey, standing outside the water next to a freshly killed Seviper.

The Seviper's killer- a Dragonite. An old Dragonite with only one eye- there was an ugly scar over the other, permanently closed eye. This particular dragon had done some fighting in his day- he had been through some hardcore battle. His left eye was the damaged one. However, something was off, the Dragonite wasn't eating his freshly slain meal. He didn't have his back pointed towards the woods that the pair had just emerged from- he was facing the woods dead on, a sly smile plastered on his face. That look, made it seem as if the dragon had been waiting for them- or at the very least been waiting for _someone_ to come and confront him. Naturally, this put the pair on edge- they remained on their guard as they approached the smiling Dragonite.

"Ah, good, your here...I've been waiting for you..." The Dragonite said happily, his one good eye dead set on the pair of Pokemon that were cautiously approaching him- he wasn't worried at all. What he said promptly earned a comment from the Absol.

"Waiting for us huh, that mean you've been following us big guy? Spying on us like some kind of creep- a stalker?" Xela said calmly, a hint of humor in her voice. Even as she was being stared down by a dragon big enough to bite her head off, she still had the nerve to try and make insults. However, all she managed to do was earn a humored chuckle from the orange beast.

"Not at all my dear...You see, I've been waiting here for quite some time- waiting for someone with the talent to get past my little scent trick. And it would seem, that _you_ my dear, seem to be exactly what I've been waiting for..." The Dragonite said before stretching his arms as if getting ready for a fight.  
"So, why don't we get this show on the road, and find out whether or not your worthy of my..._Services_..." He added as he stretched his limbs, before taking a defensive stance and waiting for the pair to attack him. As was expected, neither Xela nor Lance made a move to strike him down- they just eyed each-other suspiciously, unsure whether or not they'd be able to take on a dragon type dead on. The Absol and the Zoroark both happened to be ice type, which most dragons happened to be weak against- and Xela was also a fairy type, which supposedly made her completely immune to dragon type attacks. The key word being supposedly- she'd never really gotten into a fight with a dragon before, not directly at least. The most she'd done was throw a few well based fairy type attack, and swoop in to claim the spoils of cold blooded victory.  
"Come on lass, I'm waiting. Don't be shy now..." The Dragonite said after a long period of silence and immobility on the Absol and Zoroark's part- he was still wearing that same sly smile. After a moment, Xela turned to Lance and cast him a questioning look- she didn't know whether or not it would be a good idea to accept the dragon's challenge.

Apparently neither of them were sure, because the Zoroark cast her the same look as soon as their eyes met. After seeing this, Xela decided to take her chances and accept the Dragonite's battle challenge- seeing as he may vary well try to strike her down if she opted to refuse. So, she tensed the muscles in her hind legs, flexed her shoulders for a moment, then she lept at the waiting dragon. She landed on his shoulder- as soon as she felt his chilled skin come into contact with the pads of her feet, she launched herself off of him. The force she created when she launched herself off of the Dragonite's frame was enough to send him stumbling backwards- he almost fell into the water behind him. However, he managed to find his center before he could take an unexpected bath- he chuckled boldly as soon as he regained his balance.

"Now that's more like it!" The Dragonite laughed as he resumed his defensive position- this time he held one of his arms out in front of his body, and he motioned with his "Fingers" for the Absol to come at him again. So she did. This time, she charged at him and aimed her blow low to the ground- she used her horn for the attack. The dragon neither attacked nor made a move to block, he just stood in his defensive stance and waited for Xela's blow to strike him- her horn came into direct contact with his knee, then stopped abruptly. Her attack had absolutely no effect of him, as soon as her horn came into contact with his skin, her body stopped moving- well, at least her head did. When her head abruptly stopped, slight pain surged through her strained neck- the pain was accompanied by a quiet popping noise. Well wasn't that peachy, not only had she failed to inflict damage on the dragon, she'd gone popped a vertebrae out of place. She remained oddly still for a long time afterwards, because she could tell by the placement of the pain in her neck that one wrong movement could be fatal- one sudden move, and the popped vertebrae would turn into a severed spinal cord. When Lance realized that the Absol was not moving, he rushed to her side and knelt down next to her- he didn't seem to care about the Dragonite standing _right_ in front of him.

"Xela?!" Lance said in a concerned tone, his voice slightly louder than usual- that must have been his way of shouting. Or at the very least his attempt at using an outside voice.

"Lance..!" Xela began, her voice strained because of the pain shooting through her neck- she was standing awkwardly because of her injury. She was unintentionally tensing every muscle in her body in an attempt to remain still- but her front legs were trembling.  
"I-I hurt my neck! A disk- I, I threw a bone out of place..!" She said in a strained tone, gritting her teeth after every other word because she could feel the muscles in her neck attempting to force the dislocated vertebrae back into place. As soon as those words passed her lips, she heard the Zoroark kneeling next to her take a sharp intake of breath- it wasn't a gasp per say, but it could be considered one.

"Hmm...Stay still..." Lance said quietly as he moved a hand to place it on the back of Xela's neck so that he could pop the bone back into place- but a scaled hand caught him before of could do so much as touch her. In an instant, he snapped his head up to peer into the serious face of the Dragonite.

"I don't remember inviting you to this duel..." The Dragonite said sternly as he lifted Lance into the air by his arm to hold him up to eye level- said Pokemon struggled madly despite his disadvantage.  
"So butt out!" He half roared before he swung his arm and threw the Zoroark clear across the clearing, sending the illusionary fox crashing into a tree- he hit the tree so hard that it snapped into two. Like a fool, Xela abruptly snapped her head to the side, her mouth agape and ready to call out to Lance, but she immediately regretted her movement. As soon as her head shifted, the dislocated vertebrae moved in the direction opposite her movement- a loud popping noise rang through the area. Just like that, she froze. Not because of the pain. Not because she'd realized her mistake- but because she'd pinched her spinal cord. She'd paralyzed herself. Her body was rigid, she couldn't move any part of her body. She couldn't even _breathe_. Panic was evident in her eyes. Of all the ways to die, suffocation was the one she'd never expected. Yet there she was, standing paralyzed next to a raging waterfall, slowly dying of oxygen deprivation. What really caught her off guard was having a massive hand slam down against the back of her neck- the blow knocked her off of her feet and made her collapse on the soggy ground in a limp heap.

Not a moment later, that same hand wrapped around her horn and lifted her into the air- her body dangled like a piece of cloth. Before she could do so much as utter a pained "Stop", the Dragonite swung his arm to the side- his vice like grip on her horn prevented her from being thrown across the landscape. However, the brutal action turned out to be a more helpful one than it was a devastating one. When her body was abruptly swung, she motion somehow forced the popped bone back into place- there wasn't even any pain, which was miraculous as far as Xela was concerned. Then, much to her surprise, the dragon released his hold on her horn and let her fall to the ground- since she had her mobility back, she landed on her feet without injury. Granted, she was still very confused.

"What did you..?" Xela muttered quietly, lifting a paw and looping it over her head to rub the back of her neck. There wasn't any pain, there were no unpleasant sensations of rushing fluids- hell, there wasn't even a tingling sensation. How in the world had something that, _brutal_, fixed her neck?

"Feels better doesn't it? I've been around the woods a few times lass, now, why don't we cut the chitchat and get back to our brawl?" The Dragonite said with something akin to humor evident in his voice, before he resumed his initial position- the Absol was beyond confused. So, he'd challenged her to a fight, but he wasn't going to attack her? Yet he'd strike down anyone who tried to interfere? Speaking of- Lance hadn't moved an inch since the dragon threw him into the tree. Had he been knocked out? Or, was it something _worse_? Xela cringed internally at the thought of the Zoroark being taken down so easily- she'd already seen his potential in the battlefield, and she was sure that he'd been impaired because of his injuries. Second guessing her decision to fight the Dragonite, she began backing up in preparation to flee- but she stopped dead in her tracks before she had a chance to turn around. No. She couldn't run away. She had to stand her ground and fight- her parents would have done the same had they been in her situation. They wouldn't have been such cowards, and neither would she. So, she took a few hesitant steps forward, before abruptly breaking out into a sprint- she charged directly at the dragon who had challenged her. Once close enough, she lept into the air and jumped onto the Dragonite's frame- his ribcage to be specific. Initially she had planed on performing another jump kick to knock him backwards into the water, but her plans were cut short when the dragon grasped her by her back legs. He quickly spun around in a circle and sent her flying into the river- the waterfall, located directly behind him.

She sank like a rock- not because she was heavy, but because her body completely relaxed as soon as she hit the water. Whether the Dragonite realized it or not, he had just ensured his defeat. Completely at ease, Xela allowed her body to sink all the way down to the bottom of the lake. As soon as her feet came into contact with the murky ground, she put her new plan into action. Expelling her held breath, she activated her ice type powers and watched as the water around her began to freeze- even the air bubbles froze on their way up to the surface of the lake. Within minutes, the water around her turned into ice- but she didn't let it freeze completely. She let it turn into ice-water- into frozen slush. Then, she tensed her hind legs, and she launched herself back to the surface of the lake. She emerged from the water as if breaking through a sheet of ice- ice crystals shot out from around her frame, some of them nearly impaling the Dragonite as they whizzed by his frame. The water beneath her feet froze solid- she was standing on a thin plate of ice. To her surprise, the dragon chuckled blandly as soon as he saw her resurface- he found the dangerous display more amusing than dangerous.

"Well now, isn't that a nifty little trick...Well come on now, have at me!" The Dragonite laughed, as excited smile plastered on his face- Xela wasted no time on giving in to his request. Using her back claws, she tore chunks out of the ice out from beneath her frame, and with a swift spinning motion the hurtled the ice shards in the direction of the dragon. He countered by using an iron tail attack, and the shards of ice were shattered with ease- he chuckled quietly. Growling, the Absol took a sharp intake of breath and expelled the air through wide jaws- _frost breath_. This time, the Dragonite took the force of the attack dead on- within seconds his body was enveloped in a thin sheet of ice. He looked almost like a porcelain doll. Not taking any chances, Xela lept off of her hand-made glacier and tackled the frozen dragon. When his body made contact with the ground, the ice encasing him shattered and the dragon was freed from his icy prison- though he had an angry Absol standing on his chest ready to rip his throat out. Despite this, he laughed happily- Xela immediately went from being angry, to being confused and a little offended. Was she really that much of a joke to him? Before she could open her mouth to ask anything along those lines, a pair of powerful arms wrapped around her frame, pulling her flush against the dragon's body.  
"Oh! Splendid, splendid! You're a warrior indeed you are! I haven't had this much fun in ages!" The Dragonite exclaimed with a hearty laugh- the Absol struggled vainly in his grasp in an attempt to get away, but it was no use.

Trying to free herself from a dragons grasp by way of pure physical ability- she may as well have been trying to push two mountains apart. The next thing she knew, her body was being heaved into the air by the Dragonite as he stood. Before she could react, the arms around her body moved her higher into the air- throwing her slightly above the dragon's head. Then, the dragon's hands took hold of her back legs- she was swiftly spun around in a circle, then tossed over to where Lance lay unconscious against the broken tree. She landed on her feet, but she still skidded and rolled after hitting the ground- in the end she wound up on her side directly in front of the Zoroark's motionless frame. By the time she was on her feet again, and ready to lash out at the Dragonite for so carelessly tossing her aside, she found that he had already disappeared- all that remained was the dead Seviper. Growling, she shook her body free of the mud and water that clung to her fur- she had gotten rather dirty when the Dragonite threw her. To top it off, the damn dragon had taken off like a coward- or, maybe it was some twisted act of mercy. He had been perfectly capable of snapping her in two after all. Thinking it best not to dwell to far into the idea, she turned her attention to the unconscious Zoroark laying a foot or so behind her- she had to make sure he was alright. Turning to face him, she took a few steps closer to put a paw on his chest and check for a heartbeat. To her relief, she clearly felt the strong, steady rhythm of his heart. He was alive, just out cold- she'd have to try and wake him up.

Putting her other paw on his shoulder, she attempted to shake him awake- when she was given no response, she thought of another approach. Leaning in closer to him, she moved her mouth next to his ear and blew into it- believe it or not, there was a good reason behind the odd action. Before she and her parents had been taken to the human settlements, if she was sick or unwilling to wake up, they would blow into her ear to get her up and moving. On the few occasions where that didn't work, they'd either lick her ear or her face, or they'd give her a nip- not a rough nip, just something mean enough to make her jump. With Lance, it seemed that simply blowing into his ear wouldn't be enough to wake him- he didn't even move. So, she decided to skip the licking method and jump straight to nipping him. So she latched on to his ear, and basically chewed on it- the next thing she knew she was on her back with an angry looking Zoroark looming over her. He didn't seem very happy with her for biting him, but aside from that, he looked fine.

"Uh...Hi?" Xela said in a confused voice as she stared up at Lance, her expression a mixture of nervousness and amusement- she honestly hadn't been expecting to wind up in this kind of a position. After a moment, the Zoroark moved off of her and glanced around the area in search of the Dragonite- all he spotted was the dead Seviper, and the partially frozen lake. Then, he turned his head to peer down at the Absol, who had already rolled over to stand up properly- she didn't seem to be injured. Confused, he grunted quietly- he was positive that she had been hurt when the dragon knocked him out. So, how had she recovered so quickly?  
"The a, the Dragonite isn't here anymore...He took off after I knocked him on his back..." Xela said slowly as she shook dirt and grass out of her fur, _again_.  
"Oh...And, he fixed my neck, somehow...I'm not exactly sure how though..." She added blandly as she inspected her body- yep, she was still filthy. The Zoroark grunted again in response to her statements- he'd of appreciated more details on the matter, but the blunt explanation he'd been given would do well enough for the time being. He also wanted to know what they were going to do about food, the entire reason they'd gone after the Dragonite in the first place was because they'd been looking for meat- and as things were now, the odds of them finding something before nightfall were not in their favor.

He hummed quietly, then grunted to get the Absol to look at him- with luck she'd catch on to what he was implying. Sure enough, she caught on to what he was implying, and in response she motioned towards the Seviper's corpse.

"No point letting it go to waste, right?" Xela said in a somewhat playful tone, before she strode over to the dead Seviper and latched onto its tail with her jaws and proceeded to drag it into the shelter of the forest. Sure, it wasn't much fun scavenging off of food found dead, but at least she was seeing to it that the poor Pokemon's death wasn't without purpose. Lance on the other hand, didn't seem to keep on eating something he hadn't killed, and to make sure that the Absol was aware of his refusal, he didn't bother to help her get it into the forest. He just followed her, watching as she dragged the dead snake into the woods by its tail. By the time they found a suitable spot to rest for the night, the sun had already disappeared over the horizon, and darkness had settled upon the land. Oddly enough, the spot they had chosen wasn't even in the forest, it was at the base of an enormous mountain. Not only that- Xela could swear that she had seen the mountain somewhere before. Not in person, but, well- the memory itself felt like a dream.  
"Hey Lance, have you ever been here before?" Xela asked curiously as she raked her claws along the Seviper's back, tearing it open. She had the feeling that it was the Zoroark's memories that had made her feel as if she had seen the mountain before- she had seen a number of things in that dream, after all. She made sure to pay close attention to the Zoroark as he cast a glance around the area and examined the mountain they had settled next to.

Then, after a while, Lance turned to face her and he shook his head "No", meaning that he had not been to the mountain before. She sighed tiredly, displeased with her answer, and offered him a curt nod of understanding before rolling the Seviper over to rake her claws across its belly- this one, had been a female. She went straight for the egg sack, the best tasting part of serpent Pokemon- her hunger took hold of her the instant the food met her tongue. Before she realized what was happening, she'd devoured roughly half of the Seviper's edible flesh. Somewhat startled by her actions, she cast a glance in the Zoroark's direction to see what kind of a look he was giving her. To her surprise, he looked completely calm- this wasn't the first time he'd seen someone gorge themselves with food. Hell, as far as nature went, all carnivorous Pokemon became gluttonous after making a kill- that was how they were able to go for so long without food. Take into account that it can take between three to four days to digest six pounds of meet- and most carnivorous Pokemon eat at least that much after obtaining a meal. As far as she could tell by the feel of her stomach, she had just eaten about nineteen pounds- meaning that she would be a _very_ heavy sleeper tonight. Groaning somewhat, she turned to walk towards Lance, who was sitting down and leaning against the bottom of the mountain.

She curled up next to him, resting her head on her front legs, and tucking her hind legs beneath her body. She yawned tiredly, and sighed as she felt her body grow heavy. Her eyes slowly fell closed as sleep began to overtake her, and- she vaguely felt the weight of an arm dropping over her back...

/

Alright, that's this chapter and how it turned out. Again, sorry it took me so long.

Now, about the Dragonite that showed up- I don't have a name for him yet. If anyone wants to send me a few name ideas, then I would really appreciate that (Because I have no clue what to call him).

Hum...I don't know what else to say...

Comments? Reviews? Character offers? Random songs? *What does the fox say?*


	8. Chapter 6

Woo! Finally got this chapter posted! Listen everyone, I know it took me _**forever**_to get this damn chapter posted, but I actually have a pretty good reason for that.  
**My OCD acted up.**

Alright, I'll come out and say this now- I've never actually been tested for OCD, but I KNOW I have it, and for a number of reasons. One of them being that as soon as I get an idea in my head, I CANT GET IT OUT! I wound up dropping everything I was doing because about halfway through writing this chapter, I discover CREEPYPASTA.  
Go ahead, tell me I'm a little late to the trend- but I don't get out much, even online. And as soon as I found all this creepypasta stuff, I want to know where the hell the came from- so I started looking into it. I found and ready the origin stories of Jeff the Killer, Laughing Jack, Ticci Toby, Smile Dog, and BED Drowned. And I got hooked people- I couldn't stop reading.

Then, like an idiot I took a shower. Yeah, sounds weird- but I actually get a majority of my ideas while in the shower. Something about the sound and feel of the water helps me relax, and forget the outside world- hence my mind begins to wander. So, take a guess at what happened- the idea of creating my own creepypasta character and story popped into my overly relaxed mind.  
That's when my OCD kicked into high gear.  
Don't get mad, I tried- I TRIED to keep working on the chapter but I was so locked on to the creepypasta crap that I couldn't put two words down in this story without completely loosing my train of thought! So, I wound up stopping with this, and getting to work on the creepypasta. Crapped out the origin story, and three parts to the actual story story in about 3 days. As soon as that was done- I was able to return to this story. Finished it in about a day and a half, now I've posted it.

Alright, I'll stop wasting your time now- enjoy!

/  
Red eyes slowly fluttered open, the mind in command of them forced into awareness. The sky was still dark, it was still nighttime- there was a small fire struggling to stay alight not far off. Odd, she didn't recall building a fire- it must have been Lance. Wait, Lance? He wasn't sitting next to her anymore, and the weight on top of her back was long gone. He must have gotten up and wondered off while she slept. Slowly lifting her head, her body unwilling to wake despite her alertness, she peeked around to see if she could spot any signs of the Zoroark. Confused, she pulled herself to her feet and stumbled towards the fire, nearly tripping and falling face first into it- she was _not_ ready to be awake yet. Well, nearly having her face burned off was enough to get her body to cooperate- so, she didn't have to worry about stumbling anymore for the time being. Shaking her head in an attempt to further wake herself up, she back away from the fire and did a quick look around the area. The first thing she noticed was that the Seviper carcass had been picked clean- either Lance had swallowed his pride and eaten it, or some of the local scavengers came through and had at it. Not that it mattered at the moment- she certainly hadn't been planning on eating something that had been dead for more than half a day. She had more taste than that.

Continuing her examination of the area, she noticed that there weren't any footprints in the rocky soil that surrounded the mountain- and about ninety yards in every direction. Well, there weren't any _new_ footprints at least- aside from the ones she had made upon waking up and stumbling about. As in, there was no physical evidence of the Zoroark going anywhere- it was as if he had up and vanished. Or at least that would have been the case if it hadn't been for her sense of smell- she'd already been around him long enough to now recognize his scent. He had gone back into the forest- and unless her nose was messed up, he had probably gone after something. She could smell another Pokemon- one that smelt or rock and metal. Taking a deep intake of breath through her nose, she tried to figure out what kind of Pokemon Lance had gone after, and for a split second, she was sure it was a Larvitar. Though that couldn't be the case, because Larvitar didn't carry around a metallic smell. Either way, she needed to find the Zoroark and figure out what had provoked him so much that he had to disappear while she slept. Following her nose, she hastily moved throughout the wood in search of the illusionary fox that had so mysteriously taken off on her- but she noticed something very strange. The scent never touched the ground- it didn't even touch the plants. The smell came only from the air. She almost felt as if she was tracking a ghost.

There is no describing how surprised she was when she managed to locate her companion- she was so startled that she fell still and stared in awe at his odd "Transformation". His lower body was translucent, as in she could see through it- it was as if she was staring at a living shadow. The markings on his body were glowing _insanely_ bright- to the point where even his eyes were standing out in the darkness. Hell, even his _mane_ was alight. His violet fur was pulsating with dark energy- an eerie black mist was seeping off of his body like steam from rapidly boiling water. Swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat, Xela shifted her eyes to see what the Zoroark had left to confront, and much to her surprise, it was only a Larvitar. Wait. She took a closer look- there was no way that what she was seeing was actually a Larvitar. There was simply _too much_ wrong with it. Metallic blue skin, which reflected the glow Lance was giving off. A rough, jagged horn and tail, pulsating with heated energy. Red, robotic looking eyes which gave off their own light. Yeah, there was no way in hell that what she was looking at was a Larvitar- unless!

"Lance don't!" Xela shouted as she suddenly broke out of whatever trance she had been in and charged towards the angry Zoroark. Within seconds she was standing between him, and the Pokemon whom she believed was another escaped experiment. As soon as she was in front of him she gasped- she'd never seen such a feral look in his eyes before. For a split second, she had the unbearable urge to run away from him- but she didn't. She stood strong, and held her ground, despite the way he was snarling at her.  
"Lance, leave him alone..!" She said sternly, fluffing up the hair along her back in an attempt at making herself seem more intimidating. What happened next came as more of a surprise than she ever could have expected. He raised his arm, and swiped at her. His claws ran across her cheek and tore the corner of her mouth open- she could taste her own blood moments later. Of all the things he could have done, he went and attacked her.

"Move!" Lance snarled, his usually quiet voice now deep and menacing. He meant business, and he was making damn sure that the Absol understood that. Xela stood firm- she refused to move out of the Zoroark's way. If he was going to hurt the Pokemon behind her, he would have to take her out first.

"No!" Xela said boldly, blood dripping from her chin and running down her neck to seep into her already stained fur. Her remark earned another swat from the Zoroark, but this time, she turned her head to block it with her horn. Lance wound up cutting his hand.

"I said move!" Lance snarled again as he lifted his other hand to throw another blow- this time, he threw his weight into it. So, even though the Absol shifted her head to block the attack, the force of the hit was enough to send her skidding away on her side- she had been moved. Not one moment later, the Zoroark was after the "Larvitar" that he had pursued- he landed blow after blow against its body, knocking it around like a punching bag. Wincing, Xela forced herself back onto her feet, and she charged towards the illusionary fox. Without bothering to think, she lept into the air and attempted to tackle Lance- but her aim was off. Instead, she came into contact with his extended arm, and in response to the contact she latched onto his unguarded flesh with her jaws. The unfamiliar taste of his blood flooded her senses without hesitation, but she dragged him to the ground nonetheless. Now that she had hold of him, she wasn't about to let him go. Only seconds after grabbing him, she had him pinned to the rocky soil that surrounded the mountain- her jaws on one arm and her foot holding him down by the opposite shoulder. He struggled violently, trying to claw and bite his way out of her grip. Then he did to her as she did to him. He latched onto the leg she used to pin his shoulder down, and he ground his teeth to inflict surging pain.

Tightening her hold on his arm, she dug her claws into his shoulder- if he was so hellbent on causing her pain, then she'd do the same to him. Much to her relief, he removed his jaws from her leg shortly after she began to claw at him- so she removed her claws. No use in hurting him when he wasn't hurting her- or so she had thought. The moment Xela's nails left his shoulder, Lance lifted his free arm off of the ground and grabbed her by her horn. Then, he _pulled_. In an instant she was yanked off of his other arm and thrown towards the surrounding trees- now wasn't this deja vu. She hit a tree so hard that it broke into two- but she was not knocked unconscious. What happened next however, was completely unexpected. He jumped back onto his feet, turned to face her, reached behind his back, and unsheathed his sword. She had forgotten about his blade- it had been strapped to his back since they left the Blissey family. Hell, she'd even forgotten that she'd been wearing her vest since then- it fit her so comfortably that she didn't even realize she'd had it on. Flinching, she pulled herself back to her feet and did her best to prepare for an attack. To her surprise, he just turned around and faced the "Larvitar"- her eyes really snapped open when he did that.

"Lance!" Xela shouted as she took a few staggering steps forwards, limping on the leg that had been bitten- he wasn't seriously going to cut a _baby_ to pieces, was he? That's what the "Larvitar" was after all, a baby. No way in hell would she let any harm come to a child- it didn't matter what it was. She'd even protect a human child she felt so strongly about keeping the young safe. Taking a few more steps forward, she attempted to catch up to the Zoroark, who had already gone to stand in front of the trembling "Larvitar".  
"Lance...Stop!" She cried, her voice heavy with pain- she knew what it was though, her leg was broken. Lance must have snapped the bone when he bit her, or, maybe it had broken when she hit the tree. Either way, she was in agony. Panic flooded her system as she staggered closer to the Zoroark- he wasn't listening to her. His blade was raised and ready to land a finishing blow. Then everything went blank- it was as if she blinked her eyes and time skipped forward. The next thing she knew, she was between Lance and the "Larvitar" once more, only this time, she was crouched over on top of the soil eating Pokemon. Wincing, she peered up at the Zoroark, fear becoming evident in her features.

He was looming over them, his sword held above his head and ready to be brought down- ready to impale the body of the Pokemon he sought to slay. His eyes were cold and without mercy- he had no intention of letting the "Larvitar" go, and he'd probably kill Xela to get to him. She could feel the little Pokemon trembling beneath her frame- he was terrified. Shifting her weight to better cover the "Larvitar" with her body, she stares up at Lance and remains silent as he stares down at her. His crystal markings are still glowing brightly, and his lower body is still see through- but, something is happening. The glow emanating from him is darkening, growing dim, and his transparent lower half is starting to look more solid. She lays there and stares as the Zoroark slowly returns to his normal state- when the glow is gone and his body is no longer transparent, he slowly lowers his blade. Distrusting his actions, the Absol called out to him.

"If you want to kill him, you'll have to go through me..!" Xela wheezed, using her good leg to pull the "Larvitar" closer to her beaten frame. Her words earned an immediate glare from the Zoroark, who lifted his blade back up and thrust it in her direction. She clenched her eyes shut and cringed, expecting the pain of metal to surge through her body- but the pain never came. Hesitantly, she peeked an eye open to examine her body, and she repressed a gasp. Lance had aimed in her directly, but her purposely missed her- the blade was sheathed in the stone directly behind her head. Had he moved his blade at a slightly different angle, its edge would have cut her face open- thats how close he came to stabbing her.

"Don't...Get in my way...Again..." Lance warned, before he withdrew his sword and returned it to its proper sheath, and walked away- he didn't bother to stay and help Xela with her wounds. She had gotten between him and his prey, so he wasn't about to take pity on her. The Absol didn't even bother to call out after him, she wasn't about to ask her attacker for aid. Besides, right now her attention was on the "Larvitar", she was concerned about his injuries.

"Are you alright little one?" She asked gently as she moved off of the smaller Pokemon, quickly realizing that there was a piece of metal stuck to his mouth. Her first instinct was to try and pull it off- but she quickly realized that the plate of metal was fused to his skin, so there would be no getting it off. She also realized that the "Larvitar" was rendered mute because of his, _abnormality_- she didn't want to call it a deformity, for reasons to personal to reveal. So, for the time being she'd have to rely on its body movements to understand whatever it tried saying to her. Testing her boundaries as far as her broken leg went, she bent over as if to offer the mutated Larvitar a ride on her back- but the smaller Pokemon just stared up at her with blank, robotic eyes. In the blink of an eye she had him by the back of his neck. She wasn't trying to hurt him, just trying to get hold of him so that she could carry him- like how most mammalian mothers carried their offspring. With that in mind, she put as much weight on her wounded leg as she could, and she began carrying the mutated Larvitar back in the direction of where she and Lance had set up camp. Her limbs screamed at her to stop. The weight of the smaller Pokemon was more than her neck was willing to tolerate- but she held strong.

No force in the forest would be able to make her abandon the creature held firmly in her jaws- her maternal instincts would drive her to protect him with her life. In light of previous events, those instincts had already proven that particular fact. The trip itself took hours, for a number of reasons. The biggest reason being that Xela was badly injured and that she could barely walk- there was no chance of her running for a while. The next reason was that the mutated Larvitar was heavier than he looked- imagine putting a two-hundred pound crate on a rope and holding that rope in your mouth while trying to walk. Well, carrying him was actually _worse_ than that. The last issue was the terrain- all of the changes in the slope made it difficult to travel. She actually fell once or twice upon trying to walk down a hill. As for how the mutant Larvitar reacted to being hauled off by the wounded Absol, he didn't put up a struggle or show any signs of distress- which came as a bit of a surprise. By the time they reached the "Campsite", the first signs of the approaching day had become painfully apparent- vibrant pink and purple colorations adorned the sky. Lance, for one reason or another, was standing as if waiting for Xela to return so that they could continue on their journey. If that was the case, then he was about to be gravely disappointed- because the Absol wasn't about to go anywhere with him.

Her broken leg was swollen and she was exhausted from carrying the insanely heavy mutant Larvitar around all night- in other words she was in no condition to be traveling. Once back to where she had lain the night prior to the sunrise, the Absol released the Pokemon held securely in her jaws and collapsed onto her side, but she remained conscious. She was panting quietly between heavy breaths, her body was trembling slightly as if cold. Sweat was forming on her skin despite her shivering frame, though it was only viewable on the areas of her body without hair. Anyone with a pair of eyes and knowledge of the aftermath of tedious battle would know that she was going into shock. She'd overworked her damaged body and now that she'd taken the chance to rest, her injuries had caught up with her- if she wasn't given aid immediately she could vary well die. _That_, seemed to be something that the Zoroark was unwilling to bear upon his conscience. He was at her side the moment sweat began farming on the Absol's chilled body, a hand on the side of her head to get a feel of just how cold her frame had become. That answer was _very_ cold- it was as if he'd touched the "Skin" of a wet reptile. Casting a short glance in the direction of the mutated Larvitar he had attacked, Lance contemplated killing the little nuisance while Xela was incapacitated- but, taking into account that she'd thrown herself into shock for the sake of the little Pokemon, he decided to leave him be. For _now_.

Growling quietly under his breath as warning to the smaller Pokemon, he gently lifted the Absol off of the ground and proceeded to walk around the base of the mountain. He needed to find a cave- caves were shelter, which was something Xela needed at the moment. To his irritation the mutated Larvitar followed closely behind him as he walked, but he kept his composure for the sake of the female he held securely in his arms. She wasn't even moving anymore, save for her now eerily slow breathing. Her eyes were half open and glazed over, but none could tell if it was from pain or the threat of death. Mix these symptoms in with her chilled body, and one would have naturally assumed that she was standing on deaths door. _Shock_ is something, a state or the mind or body, that can cause death even when wounds are not present- and from the looks of her, she had fallen into the progressive stage of shock. As in, her internal organs were beginning to shut down because of her dangerously slow heart-rate and blood-pressure- both of these issues in her circulatory system where what had caused her temperature to drop so drastically. He needed to get her warmed up and soon- if he could get her warmed before she entered the forth and final stage of shock, the refactory stage, then she had a chance at survival. _Chance_ being the strained word of that statement- usually by the time someone reached the third stage of shock, they'd suffered long lasting internal damage.

A sudden sensation on the back of his leg drew Lance from his thoughts on the matter, and he turned his head and peered down to find the mutant Larvitar looking up at him. The small Pokemon had its "Hand" on the back of his leg. Growling, he narrowed his eyes and glared down at the supposed soil eating Pokemon- he wasn't in the mood to deal with this little hindrance.

"What..?!" Lance growled coldly, his quiet voice laced with venom- his crystal markings began to glow dangerously. The Pokemon in question blinked a couple of times, then abruptly ran someplace away from the angry Zoroark- but not far enough away to disappear from sight. In fact, the mutated Larvitar only ran about fifteen feet, then stopped and stared in the direction of the illusionary fox, who just stood there and glared at him. Then, for one reason or another the supposed soil eating Pokemon began to dart back and forth between the Zoroark and the spot he had ran to- if Lance didn't get the hint he'd be counted as an idiot. The mutant Larvitar was trying to show him the right way to go. Why else would he stop at the exact same spot every time he ran away from illusionary fox? There weren't any other good reasons. So, despite his irritation, Lance set out and followed the smaller Pokemon. Besides, when it came down to it, the mutated Larvitar probably knew more about the area than he did- so it was better to let the expert take the lead. Sure enough, after following the little nuisance for about fifteen minutes the Zoroark found himself standing at the entrance of an enormous cave- a Snorlax could have walked in and still had room to jump about three feet if he wanted to.

Plenty of space- check. Now, Lance needed to decide whether or not this cave would be a suitable shelter until Xela recovered from her injuries. Glancing around, he checked off the necessities. Was the ground dry? According to his feet, it was. The fact that a Larvitar was using it as shelter only strengthened his view on that matter- because mutated or not, Larvitar don't like water. Next question, were there any obvious hazards? There weren't any stalagmites or stalactites, nor did the cave itself seem unstable- so that was a no. Meaning that as far as safety went the cave was in excellent shape. Alright, were there any signs of enemy Pokemon? So long as he didn't count the mutated Larvitar, he didn't sense anything worth looking into- so they weren't in danger of being attacked. The last thing he needed to check into was airflow- if the cave didn't have more than one entrance or exit than he wouldn't allow more than a few days rest in it. He licked his nose and pointed it straight up in the air to check for a breeze, and he felt one- it was slight, but it was airflow nonetheless. Good- this cave was ideal shelter. He wasted no time laying the virtually motionless Absol on her side so that he could get a fire going, and he purposely built it close to her so that she would warm up. The fuel for the fire happened to be dry sticks scattered around just outside the cave, and since Lance was also a fire type, he was able to get a blaze going in a matter of seconds.

With the fire up and burning, the Zoroark was free to tend to the other issues regarding the Absol- namely her broken leg and injured cheek. Even though he had told himself that he wouldn't tend to the wounds he'd caused Xela because she'd challenged him, having her die because of the injuries he'd caused would undoubtedly give him nightmares. Not only that. Now that he was thinking about it, he realized that she hadn't actually been trying to fight him- if she had been then he would have wound up with more than a hurt hand and damaged shoulder. So, she'd only been trying to get him to leave the nuisance that was the mutated Larvitar alone- or something like that. Oh well- to late to do anything about that particular misunderstanding now. He'd already broken one of her legs and, more than likely, scarred her face for life. Sighing, he got to work on putting her busted leg in a splint. He took some of the sturdiest sticks from outside the cave, and collected a few thin vines from the trees, and he used them make a brace. He straightened the broken leg, lined sticks along it, and fastened the sticks to the battered appendage via the vines he had gathered. Before he did that though, he decided that it'd be best if Xela didn't wear her vest for a little while- by means of a miracle he managed to work the confounded clothing off of her frame without further damaging her leg. He found a spot to hide the vest inside the cave so that scavengers wouldn't sneak off with it, and he decided to sleep by the hiding spot as an added safety measure.

As for her damaged cheek, the only thing he could do for the time being was lick it clean and hope that the wound would heal properly. At the moment he didn't have anything that he'd be able to use as a healing solvent, so whether or not the gash would leave a scar upon recovery depended completely on the Absol's natural healing abilities. Strange though- he'd noticed earlier when he bit her but hadn't been calm enough to pay any attention. Her blood had an, _odd_ taste to it- not a bad taste though, a good one. The taste was, sweet in a sense- or maybe comforting would have been a better word. As soon as those first few drops of blood touched his tongue he felt a surge of warmth spread through his frame- it was as if he was being wrapped in a warm blanket. With her injuries tended to the best of capability, Lance moved away from Xela to give her better space to sleep, and he himself intended on getting a few hours rest in before checking on her again. So, he walked off to sit next to the spot where he had hidden the Absol's vest, and after removing his blade and putting it next to the vest, he settled down to go to sleep. As he drifted into his slumber, he subconsciously found himself smiling- the warm feeling Xela's blood had left him with remained with him as he fell asleep.

Then, once the Zoroark was sound asleep, the mutated Larvitar hesitantly approached the unconscious Absol and inspected her cautiously. He moved slowly to stand near her stomach, as in between her front and back legs, and he watched her for a while. Then, for one reason or another, he lied down next to Xela. His head rested on her chest and for some strange reason, the Absol smiled slightly in her sleep.  
/

Guh- its over! Got it done! I apologize now in case the story got wonky anywhere- as I mentioned earlier I tried to work on this while my OCD was acting up and ordering me to work on something else. Actually, while I'm on the matter- if anyone wants to help me edit, by all means point out the flaws so I can come back and fix them. Hell- the best authors in the world tell you not to try and correct everything yourself- because it cant be done.

On another note- if you like horror stories, check out what my OCD drove me to work on in the middle of this.  
browse through my stuff and you'll find it. I call it "Snakeman-Jack", so, if you wanna just go to DA and type that in there's only like 6 things that pop up, and 4 of em are mine.

That aside.

Comments? Reviews? Character submissions? How about Lance singing "What does the fox say?" while dancing? XD


	9. Chapter 7

Whew- all done with this chapter! Sorry it took me so long, I kinda fell into a strange mood for a few days. Literally, I was at a mental state where I found the patterns in the wall more appealing than the T.V or my computer for that matter- it was like I was on my meds again. Granted, I haven't been on medication for about 7 years now- and I'm not currently on any. All I know, is that I felt like I was on my meds.

Anyways~ yeah, I'm all done with this chapter. Hope everyone likes it- oh, and I've chosen the name for Xela's dream ability. Not going to bother telling you to keep an eye out for it, because the name is selected via dialogue among the characters.  
Also, we learn the "Mutated" Larvitar's name, and I give you a hint of some issues later to come every early on. So...Yeah, have at it ^^

__

A dark place. A bitch black, dark place. Stone and rock. What was this place? Where was she? Xela had no memory of this place- so how did she get here? She tried to sit up, tried to look around. She was able, but every movement she made felt strange- it was as if she was no longer a part of her own body. As if, she was a spirit moving without a body- she was aware of the ground beneath her feet, but her mind. She could not consciously feel the stone floor that she stood upon. How strange- such an odd feeling, and yet she was completely at ease. Hesitantly, she took a few steps then fell still to wait and see for any changes- there was one, but not with her. She could hear voices- a male and a female voice. They seemed to be talking to someone. Curious, she started in the direction of the voices. She saw a faint light- the voices were near that light. She rushed for them. The light intensified- it became so bright that it blinded her. She continued to rush through it- she charged blindly. Then, the light abruptly disappeared. She stood at the opening of a cave- outside the cave. Wait, how did she get here? If anything, she should be standing inside the cave peering out- there was no way that she could've been surrounded by that much darkness and not been inside the cave.

_ Pushing her confusion aside, she takes a few hesitant steps into the cave- the voices she'd been hearing grew somewhat louder. Ah- so thats where they were coming from. Well, seeing as she was probably supposed to find the source of these voices, she decided to venture further into the cave. As she walked, she skimmed across her surroundings. Strange, she felt as if she'd seen this cave before- as if she'd been inside of it. No stalactites. No stalagmites. Aside from stone in general, there weren't any objects or formations that one would expect to find inside a cave- it was as if they'd been cleared out. That made even less sense, considering that Larvitar don't usually chomp away at the internal structures of a cave, for fear of their edible homes collapsing. Not only that- the ground was so smooth. Even if a Larvitar had actually eaten everything usually seen inside the cave, it would not have been able to leave the stony ground so, finely polished. The voices suddenly becoming clear drew her from her thoughts regarding the state of the cave- she continued to follow them as she listened._

"_Veil...Do not cry Veil...Mother is here- she is watching over you..." One of the voices, the female voice, said gently- like a mother shushing their child after a nightmare. She continued to listen as she approached the voices- they were getting so easy to hear, all she needed to do was find the owners of the voices._

"_Don't fret my son...I am here as well...Dry those tears Veil- your mother and I have faith in you...You will evolve one day- you just need more soil...You need to eat more soil..." The other voice, a male one, said in a calm and reassuring tone. Still listening, she rounded the curve of the interior of the cave, her eyes flicking with curiosity. She had learned a few things from the conversation so far. One, the voices were that of a mated pair. Two, they were talking to their son. Three, their sons name was "Veil". Four- and this one was just an educated guess- Veil was a Larvitar. Oh, and if the last assumption was correct, than the Pokemon she heard speaking were probably Tyranitar. She continued forwards down the path of the cavern, noting that the area was steadily growing darker- the voices rang so loud now. As things were going, she would probably bump into whoever it was she was meant to find in only a few more minutes. Or so she thought. She eventually came across- as in spotted, a small, metallic blue Pokemon. She immediately recognized it as the mutated Larvitar she had protected from Lance. The mutated Larvitar was sitting between two, huge, cone shaped boulders. Squinting, she eyed the boulders suspiciously- there was something, off about them. They didn't seem like natural formation- or even like natural stone for that matter._

_ There was something off with their color, and even though she was standing pretty far away from them, their texture seemed off as well. She had no idea how to describe it- all she knew was that normal rocks don't look the those boulders do. Hesitantly, she took a few cautious steps towards the mutated Larvitar and the perplexing boulders he sat between- his back was facing her, so he didn't know she was there. Then, the voices started up again- or, at least the female voice did. Out of instinct, she paused her movements._

"_Come here Veil...Give mommy a hug..." The female voice said gently, and the mutated Larvitar wasted no time standing up- but what she saw next confused her. The mu- Veil, turned to one of the boulders, ran to it, and hugged it..._

/

The need to breathe suddenly shook the Absol from her dreams, and she jumped somewhat in response to being awakened so abruptly. When she jumped, she became of a heavy weight being pressed against her side, and she turned her head to examine the issue. The mutated Larvitar was leaning on her, his head was laying on her ribcage. The weight of him had been enough to make her stop breathing in her sleep, and even now she was having trouble taking in those short gasps of breath that she needed to stay alive. Somewhat shaken, she attempts to slide out from underneath the smaller, yet heavier Pokemon- but her movements are in vain. All she manages to do is inflict pain upon herself- her broken leg and bruised body refuse to cooperate with her, so she can't get out from under the mutated Larvitar. No- Veil. She can't get out from underneath Veil. Panicking, she opens her mouth as if to scream, but the weight on her chest prevents her from making a sound. Her vision getting spotty, she starts kicking her back legs in hopes of getting someones attention. If she can't wake Veil up, then her survival depends on Lance's hearing- she could tell that he'd be able to hear her if he was near. Her claws were scraping against the stone beneath her- the sound hurt her sensitive ears. Part of her believed that the friction of her claws on the rock was creating sparks.

Her vision was blackening further. Her lungs stung painfully from the need to breathe. Her legs were slowing their movements- she was on the brink of passing out. If that happened, then death would be the higher possibility. Lights started blurring, images melded together into one out of focus blob, she opened her mouth to call for help out of desperation. Then, in a flash a rush of air flooded her lungs- the weight resting on her ribcage was gone. She lay still, her only movement that of her chest as she gasps for breath. Her eyes are wide from shock, and they are watering from lack of blinking. Minutes, hours, there is no telling how much time passed before she'd recovered enough to turn her head to see where the weight had gone. Veil was standing up, staring at her with his robotic eyes- her struggling had woken him up. He seemed confused- did he not realize how heavy he was? Did he not know that he'd nearly suffocated her? Once Xela stopped panting the mutated Larvitar returned to his initial place resting his head on top of her chest. Alright, he obviously had no idea how easily he could kill her just by doing that. Meaning he actually hadn't realized that he'd been the reason Xela had started struggling in the first place. Coughing, the Absol kicks at him with her hind leg- not aggressively, but hard enough to make him take a step back. He resumed the earlier position of standing and staring at her.

"Veil..!" Xela gasped between painful coughs, not noticing that her mentioning the mutated Larvitar's name made his robotic eyes glow more vibrantly.  
"You can't..! You can't lean on me..! Now..! Your to heavy..!" She continued to try and speak through her fit of coughing, her eyes growing teary due to her pained rasps- how badly had she needed to breathe earlier? Pretty badly, considering how much her chest stung from the sharp intakes of air. The unexpected feeling of someone patting her back only worsened her fit- she had been so startled by it that she'd literally started choking on her own saliva. The patting continued for a while only to turn into slow rubs, and after some time she managed to even out her breathing to the point of being able to physically relax. Not long after, she rolled her head to the side to look around- Lance stared down at her through calm eyes. Her coughing fit had woken him from his sleep, and after deeming it necessary to calm her down, he'd decided to give patting her back a go. His mistake had been touching her so abruptly, knowing that she hadn't known he was nearby- but in all honesty, he hadn't meant to scare her.

"Sorry..." Lance said quietly, his eyes calm and void of emotion- or so they seemed. While it was brief, Xela was certain that she'd seen something flash behind his eyes. There for a second but gone in less time than it takes to blink, but she still saw it. Guilt- she saw guilt. Spotting it perplexed her, she would not deny that, but knowing his past and understanding his pain, she deemed it better to leave her sightings of the emotion unstated. She wouldn't put that burden on him- but she would burden him with other issues.

"About what..?" Xela asked quietly, her voice cracking as she spoke- her throat had gone dry from all of her coughing. So dry that it _burned_. The Zoroark placed his hand on the top of her head and pushed it down gently, so that she would lie on the ground completely- but she still kept her eyes on his.

"Rest..." Lance said softly, his eyes flashing with gilt again before he slowly moved to his feet and walked out of the cave. He cast Veil a hateful look as he went, and said Larvitar sent the look right back at him. The two didn't get along. So, the Absol was left alone with the robotized Larvitar- the little Pokemon that she had rescued, then dreamt about. Speaking of- she had yet to think of a name for her little dream ability, though she'd admit that a few came to mind. Thinking that she may be alone with the mute Larvitar for a while, she decided to at least attempt to have a conversation with him. So, she shifted her weight around to lie more comfortably on her side, then she turned her attention to Veil.

"Hey...Veil..." Xela said quietly, her voice cracking- she still needed a drink. She watched intently as the Larvitar's eyes flashed in response to hearing his name, but she couldn't tell what the sudden glow represented. Was it confusion? Anger? Perhaps it was just his way of showing that he recognized that she was talking to him. She decided to sort that out with him before bothering to try and have a conversation- or talk to him, seeing as he couldn't speak.  
"Your name is Veil right? Flash your eyes, if I'm right..." She said quietly, moving her uninjured front leg so that she could better lie on it. Not long after, she saw the Larvitar's eyes light up. Good, she knew his name. Now came the complicated stuff- she had to establish a system of understanding.  
"What a lovely name...Alright Veil, as you can see I'm in no condition to be moving around, so I'll have to just lay here for a while. Would you mind keeping me company until Lance gets back? If you agree, then flash your eyes again." She said with a soft smile as she observed the Larvitar's reactions. Much to her dismay, he just turned and walked out of the cave as soon as she was finished with her question.

Sighing in disappointment, she closed her eyes and waited for sleep to return and overtake her senses- but just before she could fall unconscious, she felt something splash on her face. Startled, she snaps her eyes open and lifts her head up to stare at the one responsible for her surprise- it was none other than Veil. He was staring down at her, holding what appeared to be a pitcher plant- or, something in relation to it. Well, whatever it was, she could tell by looking at it that it was full of water. She glanced at the Larvitar curiously. Had he left just to get her something to drink? Obviously he'd noticed how bad her voice sounded, but she hadn't expected him do to such a thing. Larvitar were weak against water after all. Grunting, the Absol shifted so that she could sit up more comfortably, and she cocked her head to the side slightly.

"Is that for me?" Xela asked curiously, her cracking voice sending unwanted chills down her spine- she was appalled at how terrible she sounded. Veil flashed his eyes brightly in response to her question, then took an abrupt step forward and pressed the oddly shaped plant to her lips- she drank the water greedily. Once the plant was empty, the Larvitar tossed it to the side and sat down in front of the Absol, and he peered up at her with observant eyes. Little to no emotion shown in those robotic eyes of his, and his inability to change his facial expression made it even more difficult to tell what he was feeling. Nevertheless, Xela was dead-set on having a conversation with him, no matter how one sided it was bound to be. So, she lied back on her side and allowed her head to rest on the cold stone floor, then, she sighed. Time to get back to the task at hand- naming her dream ability.  
"Well Veil, since your here, would you mind helping me with something? Flash your eyes if you'll help me..." She said calmly, her eyes on the Larvitar who's eyes lit up as soon as she finished her question- so it would seem that he was willing to help. She smiled a little at how quickly he'd responded to her.

/

"Alright then, listen- I have a special power, one that lets me see _things_ that most other Pokemon can't see. This power lets me view the history of those around me, it allows me to peer into their memories- but its only active while I sleep..." She said calmly, pausing for a moment to make sure Veil hadn't gotten confused. If his steady gaze meant anything, then she hoped it was understanding- because frankly, she couldn't tell. Sighing internally, she decided to continue.  
"Well, I haven't bothered giving my, _talent_, a name yet- but I have a few ideas. So, I'll just throw a few names out there...Flash your eyes when you hear one that you like." She said calmly, before taking a short pause to take a deep breath.  
"Dreamweave- what do you think of that?" She asked calmly. Veil blinked at her a few times and titled his head as if thinking- then he hastily shook his head. Alright, that was a "No".  
"Alright, Dreamkeeper- how about Dreamkeeper?" She received the same response.  
"Okay, what about Dreamscape?" Again, she received the same response- but this time the Larvitar took more time to give her a reply. He took his time thinking it over. Sighing, she stretched her hind legs before offering her final thought.

/

"How about Dreamsight?" She asked hesitantly, believing that the Larvitar would dislike her final idea. To her surprise, Veil's eyes flashed brightly in response- meaning that he liked that one. A small smile graced her features.  
"Alright, Dreamsight it is..." She said calmly, pausing for a moment or so because of a yawn.  
"Well, now that that's settled, lets see if we can-" She attempted to speak only to fall silent abruptly when Lance stepped into view- he was dripping wet and didn't look happy. Barely repressing a giggle, she turned her head to face him and attempted to speak without laughing.  
"W-what happened to you?" She asked with a smile, humor and the urge to laugh evident in her voice. The Zoroark swiftly turned his head to glare at her and threw a dead Goldeen in her direction. Well, that vaguely answered one question, but she wasn't quite sure whether or not she was overlooking something important. Before she could open her mouth to ask him a follow up question, he snapped at her.

"_Don't. Ask._" Lance practically snarled as he walked further into the cave, dragging his damp body along the cave walls as he did in a vain attempt at trying himself off. All he really managed to do was dampen the stone, but hey, you can't blame a guy for trying. That was all it took for Xela to burst into a fit of giggles- and for the Zoroark to swarm over to her and snarl in her face. To bad, because the Absol was past the point of believing that Lance would do something to hurt her when there wasn't any need for it- she sorta had to admit that she brought it on herself last night.

"_Stop. Laughing._" He growled, pressing his nose against hers so that he could literally "Get up in her face"- very unlike him, but still not as threatening as he'd intended on it being. All he really managed to do was give Xela a shoulder to rest her head on while she laughed hysterically.

"I-I can't..! I can't..!" Xela managed to work out between gasps for breath as she continued to giggle- honestly, there was something about seeing Lance so worked up about being wet that made it impossible for her to keep her composure. She knew that in reality the situation wasn't anywhere near as funny as she seemed to think it was, but having the Zoroark get in her face in an attempt at intimidating her- yeah she couldn't even think of a way to explain her pointless laughter. Not that she could explain it anyways, seeing as she was currently unable to breathe she was laughing so hard. Finally, after a good five or six minutes of it, Lance decided that he'd had enough. He picked up the Goldeen he'd thrown at her and shoved the side of it in her mouth- it didn't shut her up, it just muffled the noises she happened to be making. Sighing, he quite literally tried to bury his face in the stone underneath him- a lot of good that did. After a while, Xela spat out the fish in order to gasp for breath- her laughing had slowed considerably, but she still giggled every few seconds. Once she managed to quell her laughter, she lied on her side and attempted to regain her breath- and Veil decided to inspect her heaving chest. He ran his fingerless hand along her ribs, unintentionally drawing a few weak giggles from the Absol.

Her fur- he seemed to enjoy the feel of it. He bent forward and buried his face in the fur on her chest, taking a deep breath as is he found comfort in her chest. At around this time, Xela's breathing returned to normal- a soft and happy smile had appeared on her face in response to the Larvitar's affectionate actions. A strong maternal instinct woke inside the Absol- an instinct that she had not felt for many years, or so she could say. As has been pointed out many times, she's lost all sense of time- as far as she knows its sunset. Nevertheless, the realization of her sudden attachment to the little Pokemon, brought a few tears to the corners of her eyes. She'd had her hopes of knowing the many joys of motherhood shattered eons ago- so suddenly having the Larvitar cuddle up to her as if she was his parent, well, the feeling itself was bittersweet. She liked it, but at the same time it tore her heart out. Lance, being the ever observant creature that he was, noticed those few tears the moment the pricked the corners of her eyes. Naturally, he was concerned.

"Xela..?" Lance said hesitantly as he lifted a hand to brush a stray tear out of the corner of her eye, his mind automatically believing that the wounds he had given her the night prior were causing her pain. Which wouldn't have been the wrong thing to think, if he'd known any of the specific details of her past. She offered a small smile and sat up some, sighing tiredly.

"Oh- don't worry about it Lance, I just...Remembered something painful is all..." Xela said quietly, her voice laced with sadness. Whatever was on her mind, the odds of her talking to the Zoroark about it were slim, and for one simple reason- he was a _male_. Only another female- an older, more family experienced one- would be able to sympathize with the emotional pain she was dealing with. Lance however, was unaware of this fact- so attempting to be helpful, he sat down next to her and waited patiently for her to open up to him. Poor guy. If Xela hadn't realized what he was doing, he'd of wound up sitting there for hours waiting for the Absol to speak up. So, she offered him the only response she could and hoped that he'd drop the subject.  
"Listen Lance, its not something that you and I would be able to discuss- its, kinda personal..." She said hesitantly, hoping that the male would catch on to what she was trying to say without forcing her to bring up the more _technical_ details of her reasons for wanting to drop the topic. Sadly, the look that the Zoroark gave her said otherwise- he didn't catch on. Meaning, she was about to embarrass the living daylights out of both of them. Sighing, she lifted her hind leg to kick at Veil again- the little Pokemon was still rubbing his face in her fur.

Once she got his attention, she flicked her head towards the cavern exit and hoped that the Larvitar was more intuitive than Lance happened to be. Much to her relief, he was. Veil turned and walked out of the cave shortly after she motioned for him to give her some privacy. Then, when she was sure that he was out of hearing distance, she turned her attention back to the Zoroark and took a deep breath- she really didn't want to do this. Pity she wasn't being given much a choice.

"Lance, I can't discuss this issue with your because its a _lady_ issue! Something only two girls could talk about in private and feel even remotely comfortable- and even _then_ it would be awkward!" Xela said hastily, her face threatening to turn violet with the approach of a blush- and from the expression on Lance's face, he was busy trying to conceal his embarrassment as well. Scratch that- his facial markings were turning purple. Yep, he was blushing. Well, at least the Absol was sure that he wouldn't pester her about the issue any further. Hell, what she'd implied make the Zoroark so uncomfortable that he turned tail and fled to a deeper part of the cave, leaving her to see if Veil was still close enough to hear her should she shout for him.  
"Veil! You can come back now!" She shouted, hoping that the Larvitar would be able to hear her. To her relief, he had been- only a few minutes after she called for him, he came trotting back into the cave and took a seat next to her. His eyes were calm and observant, but she could tell just by looking at him that he was curious about what she had to say- except she didn't really have anything to say to him. When she didn't immediately say anything, Veil turned his attention to the Goldeen Lance had brought- not to mention shoved into the Absol's face.

He moved over to the dead fish and looked it over- he'd probably never seen a Goldeen before, so his curiosity wasn't all that unexpected. He picked it up by its horn, then dropped it and watched its body bounce slightly on the ground. Then, he lifted it by one of its side fins- again he dropped it and watched it bounce. Xela watched all of this with a somewhat amused expression. Did he not realize that the Goldeen was food? Had he any idea that he was technically "Playing" with his food? Er- alright, not _his_ food per-say since he couldn't actually eat it, but he was playing with _someones_ food. Actually, now that she was thinking about it, it was probably _her_ food seeing as Lance had caught it, then shoved it in her mouth. Tilting her head slightly, she decided to claim the meal before the Larvitar made it to much dirtier than it already was. Sure, she didn't mind eating dirt, but she'd rather taste more fish than soil.

"Hey Veil, will you bring that over to me? I need to eat it before it goes bad. Wouldn't want Lance to have gotten all wet like that for nothing..." Xela said gently- the little Pokemon wasted no time bringing her her food. He set it down in front of her feet and moved to six by her side- now, he sat and watched as she ate. She started by putting her uninjured front paw on the side of the Goldeen's head, and she latched onto its horn so that she could pull it out. Most of the fish's skull came out in the process, but that came as no surprise. With the only dangerous part of the Goldeen's body out of the way, she settled in and started eating- Veil watching her closely all the while as she reduced the fish to nothing but a bare skeleton.  
/

Yesh! Good chapter? Yes, no? I love feedback! Hmmm~ anyone notice something I hinted at in the story? I don't know if I made it obvious enough or not, but sometimes you need to be obvious when it comes to foreshadowing. Feel free to ask me about what you think I've hinted at, I'll give ya a basic answer, but I'm not giving any real details ^^ Cause I'm just a bitch like that! XD

Anyways~ Comments? Character requests? Reviews? Tell me you luv me? XD Forget that last one!


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